On August 4, 2024, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke in the stands in front of Ukraine to receive the first General Dynamics F-16 fighter jet, congratulating the Ukrainian military, and the F-16 fighter jet performed in the air .
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It was a critical moment for Ukraine, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy watched two F-16 fighter jets roar overhead, a fighter jet that Kiev hopes will change the course of its war with Russia. situation.
Flanked by two other U.S.-made fighter jets, Zelensky announced on Sunday that his country’s air force had begun using the jets in operations against Russia.
“The F-16s are already in Ukraine. We did it. I’m proud of our personnel who have taken possession of these aircraft and have begun using them in our country,” he told military pilots and reporters at an undisclosed location in Ukraine.
“These aircraft are in our skies, you can see them today,” Zelensky added, thanking Ukraine’s allies for their supplies at a ceremony to unveil Ukraine Air Force Day. “They’re good here and we can take advantage of them.”
Some of Ukraine’s European allies have pledged to send F-16s to Ukraine, with the first batch of aircraft arriving in the country in late July. It is unclear how many fighter jets have been sent to Ukraine.
On Sunday, Zelensky did not specify the number of aircraft that had been delivered but said more were expected. He also acknowledged the need to train more pilots to use them.
Still, the arrival of the first fighter jets in Ukraine marked a significant achievement — Kiev had repeatedly requested the aircraft from its allies over the many months of the war. It has been awaiting U.S. approval for exports from allies willing to transfer F-16s to Ukraine, while training of Ukrainian pilots to use the aircraft has taken months.
Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium and Norway have agreed to send about 80 aircraft to Ukraine, but delivery times vary. Most are not expected to materialize until 2025.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in July that Danish and Dutch F-16 fighter jets would be “in the skies of Ukraine this summer.”
The United States says it will begin training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets.
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Since the early days of the war with Russia, Ukraine has lobbied its NATO allies to buy F-16 fighter jets, arguing that the jets would allow it to better defend its airspace, ground forces and critical infrastructure against Russian attacks and strike its enemies more effectively Set goals accordingly.
Russia has rejected the supply of F-16s, and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said last Thursday that the Russian military was prepared to shoot down F-16 fighter jets.
“There is no ‘magic bullet’ here. There is no magic bullet,” he told reporters last Thursday, according to Russian state news agency TASS.
“The armed forces of the Kiev regime will not receive universal remedies. They should realize this. If these aircraft appear, their numbers will gradually decrease. They will be shot down and destroyed. These supplies will not be able to have any significant impact. ” the impact of developments on the front lines,” he said.
Peskov said Russian servicemen were rewarded for destroying F-16 fighter jets.
Uncertain impact
Kiev is understandably tight-lipped about the weapons its F-16s will be equipped with and the aircraft’s targets. On Sunday, Zelensky suggested the mission would be kept secret and said it would be “dangerous” to comment on how the F-16s would be used.
Defense analysts say they appear to be able to carry longer-range missiles, making Ukraine more capable of striking Russian forces occupying large swaths of the country’s south and east.
“The F-16 models that Ukraine is now starting to receive are a clear improvement over the Soviet-era jets it inherited from the Soviet Union, with superior radar capabilities and longer range. At the same time, Ukraine’s F-16s should not be viewed as a mistake. of.
“One obvious issue is quantity. Ukraine has only received a small number of F-16s so far, with a total of 24 aircraft expected to arrive by the end of 2024. To put this number into context, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelen Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said in recent weeks that his country needs a fleet of 128 F-16 jets in order to effectively counter Russian air power,” Bielieskov noted.
Analysts say the fledgling F-16 fleet may also have limited weapons capabilities, and the aircraft’s effectiveness may be limited by the use of Western weapons against targets within Russia.
“Despite recent reports that the United States has agreed to equip Ukrainian F-16 fighter jets with American-made missiles and other advanced weapons, it is unclear whether Kyiv can rely on longer-range strike capabilities,” Byleskov said. He Said that the initial use of these jets will be to strengthen the country’s air defense capabilities.
“These aircraft will significantly enhance Ukraine’s ability to deny Russian pilots access to Ukrainian airspace and can also target Russian cruise missiles in flight. This is particularly important as Russia has recently demonstrated its ability to bypass existing surface-to-air defenses.” Enhanced attacks on civilian infrastructure targets across Ukraine,” he said.
On Ukrainian Air Force Day on August 4, 2024, Ukrainian President Zelensky stood in front of the first General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon that Ukraine received, covering his heart with his hand and congratulating the Ukrainian military somewhere in Ukraine.
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Defense analysts at the Center for Strategic and International Studies said, “Ukraine’s F-16 fighter jets will face the challenge of independently creating the conditions for a breakthrough in the war with Russia.”
“But with the right tactics, doctrine, logistical support and training, the F-16 can provide critical advances in strengthening Ukraine’s border defenses and establishing localized air superiority, thereby significantly enhancing Ukraine’s ground position,” Christopher Koltsov , Brent Peterson and Eric Williams point out in the analysis.
Ukraine’s need for F-16s has become even more urgent as the country’s air force, which relies largely on Soviet-era aircraft, faces a formidable enemy in the air in Russia’s Su-34 precision fighter-bombers.
Like the issue of whether to supply main battle tanks to Ukraine, the decision to provide F-16 fighter jets has not been smooth sailing, with Ukraine’s international partners wary of escalating tensions with Russia.
Delays in such decisions have led to frustration in Kiev, arguably giving Russian forces more time and space to slowly advance in the east of the country after launching a new offensive there earlier in the summer. .
