Ukraine is finally developing F-16 fighter jets, Zelensky says

Ukrainian pilots have begun flying F-16s for operations inside the nation, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Sunday, confirming the long-awaited arrival of US fighter jets more than 29 months after the Russian invasion.

The Ukrainian leader announced the use of F-16s, which Kiev has long pushed for, as he met military pilots at an air base flanked by two of the jets with two others flying overhead.

“The F-16s are in Ukraine. We did it. I am proud of our children who own these jets and have already started using them for our country,” Zelensky said at a location that authorities asked Reuters not to disclose for security reasons.

The arrival of the jets is a milestone for Ukraine after months of waiting, although it remains unclear how many are available and how much impact they will have on bolstering air defenses and on the battlefield.

Russia has targeted bases that might house them and has vowed to destroy them so they don’t affect the war.

Built by Lockheed Martin, the F-16s have been on Ukraine’s wish list for a long time due to their destructive power and global availability. They are equipped with a 20mm cannon and can carry bombs, rockets and missiles.

Speaking to reporters on the tarmac of an airport, Zelensky said Ukraine still does not have enough pilots trained to operate the F-16s or enough of the aircraft themselves.

“On the plus side, we’re expecting additional F-16s … a lot of guys are training now,” he said.

It was important, he said, that Kiev’s allies found ways to expand training programs and opportunities for both Ukrainian pilots and engineering teams.

“New Aviation Pavilion”

Ukraine has previously relied on an aging fleet of Soviet-era warplanes that are outgunned by Russia’s more advanced and far more numerous fleet.

Russia has used this advantage to conduct regular long-range missile attacks on targets across Ukraine and also to pound Ukrainian frontline positions with thousands of guided bombs, supporting its forces slowly advancing in the east.

“This is the new stage of development of the aviation of the armed forces of Ukraine,” Zelensky said.

“We have done a lot to transition the Ukrainian forces to a new model of aviation, the Western air force,” he added, citing hundreds of meetings and relentless diplomacy to acquire the F-16s.

“We often heard ‘it’s impossible’ as an answer, but we still made our ambition, our defensive need, possible,” he said.

It remains unclear what missiles the jets are equipped with. A longer missile range would allow them to have a greater impact on the battlefield, military analysts say.

Zelensky said he also hopes to pressure allied neighboring countries to help intercept Russian missiles fired at Ukraine through talks on the Ukraine-NATO Council platform.

“This is another tool, and I want to test it, so that NATO countries can talk to Ukraine about the possibility of a small coalition of neighboring countries shooting down enemy missiles,” he said.

“I think this decision is rather difficult for our partners, they are always afraid of over-escalation, but we are fighting it.”