Skip to content
Edit post

US official: F-16 jets to take 'several months at best' to arrive in Ukraine

by The Kyiv Independent news desk May 23, 2023 2:54 PM 2 min read
This audio is created with AI assistance

Support independent journalism in Ukraine. Join us in this fight.

Become a member Support us just once

It will take "several months at best" to deliver U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, according to U.S. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, cited by CNN.

The U.S. announced on May 20 that it would train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 jet fighters and cooperate with its allies to deliver the planes to Ukraine.

The training will unfold in the coming months. However, the allies are yet to decide which country will provide the jets, how many, or when.

A number of details have to be worked out before Ukrainian pilots can fly Western aircraft in large numbers, Kendall told reporters on May 22.

"We are not under any circumstances going to get F-16s or another Western fighter in significant numbers into the hands of the Ukrainian Air Force in something less than at least several months," Kendall added, as quoted by CNN.

"Several months" is a relatively quick time frame, the official said, since it usually takes over two years to train a new American pilot on the F-16 aircraft.

On May 17, U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte agreed to build an international coalition to help procure F-16 fighter jets for Ukraine. The coalition will be formed already this year, said Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

Ukraine has been campaigning for F-16s to be provided for months.

Yuriy Sak, an adviser to Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov, said on May 16 that Ukraine wants between 40 and 50 F-16 fighter jets.

Borrell: Several countries start training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 jets
Several countries, including Poland, have already started training Ukrainian pilots to use U.S.-built F-16 fighter jets, the European Union’s chief diplomat Josep Borrell said on May 23.
Support independent journalism in Ukraine. Join us in this fight.
Freedom can be costly. Both Ukraine and its journalists are paying a high price for their independence. Support independent journalism in its darkest hour. Support us for as little as $1, and it only takes a minute.
visa masterCard americanExpress

News Feed

Ukraine Daily
News from Ukraine in your inbox
Ukraine news
Please, enter correct email address
11:16 AM

Kuleba begins first trip to India.

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said he was in the Indian capital New Delhi at the invitation of Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, and that the two would "pay specific attention to the peace formula" in their talks.
5:30 AM

Ukrainian POWs faced conditional release from Hungary.

Two Ukrainian prisoners of war, part of a group of 11 handed over to Hungary by Russia in June 2023, said in an interview to Deutsche Welle, that Hungarian representatives imposed conditions preventing their return to Ukraine until the war's end.
3:16 AM

Estonian police arrest citizen who reported for Russian state media.

Estonian police have arrested Svetlana Burceva, an Estonian citizen, for allegedly violating international sanctions having served as a reporter for Russian state sponsored Balt News - an arm of the Kremlin-run Russia Today (RT) news outlet, Estonian publication Eesti Ekspress reported on March 27.
MORE NEWS

Editors' Picks

Enter your email to subscribe
Please, enter correct email address
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Successfuly subscribed
Thank you for signing up for this newsletter. We’ve sent you a confirmation email.