Denmark expects to deliver the first F-16s to Ukraine in the spring of 2024, Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen told the press in Brussels on Oct. 11.
Speaking ahead of a meeting of NATO defense ministers, Poulsen said that Denmark expects to be able to donate the aircraft "in March or April."
However, "there is a lot of work" ahead to ensure Ukrainian pilots receive enough training in how to operate and maintain the aircraft.
The delivery date "depends on how the training effort goes," Poulsen said.
The same day, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also said that Ukraine could receive F-16 fighter jets as early as spring of next year.
"The earliest is next spring when we can begin to see additional capability," Austin said in response to a question from the Kyiv Independent during a press conference at the NATO headquarters in Brussels.
Denmark and the Netherlands are leading the allied efforts to provide Ukraine with the fourth-generation F-16 jets.
The "fighter jet coalition" to provide training for Ukrainian pilots and technical staff was officially established in July by the two countries, as well as Belgium, Canada, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
Since then, other nations, such as the U.S., Greece, or Bulgaria, have also pledged to assist with the training efforts.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said in August that Ukraine would receive 42 F-16s after reaching an agreement with the Netherlands, adding that "this is just the beginning."
Denmark pledged to provide 19 of its aircraft to bolster the Ukrainian Air Force.
On Oct. 9, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said that Denmark is working to "expand and deepen" the coalition of countries willing to provide Ukraine with F-16 aircraft.
Martin Fornusek
(Updated: )
