Voice of America: Friendly fire from Ukrainian air defenses among F-16 crash theories

The Ukrainian military command is considering several theories regarding the crash of the F-16 fighter jet that resulted in the death of pilot Oleksiy "Moonfish" Mes, with one of them being friendly fire, Voice of America reports, citing a source in the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the Air Force representative said several scenarios were being investigated, including friendly fire from Ukrainian air defenses, technical malfunction, or pilot error.

"But the exact cause will not be known until the investigation is complete," he said.

Earlier, the Ukrainian Air Force reported that on August 26, during the repelling of a massive missile and drone attack by Russia, Ukrainian pilot Oleksiy Mes was killed. CNN, citing an informed source, claimed that the deceased was piloting an F-16 fighter.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine wrote: "<...> contact was lost with one of the aircraft. As it was later discovered, the aircraft crashed, and the pilot died."

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