Has Ukraine Finally Received F-16s?
Ukraine’s air force is said to have begun flying its first missions in F-16s, shortly after the first of the fighters were delivered, just before an alleged deadline set by the European nations that have pledged to supply the aircraft and pilot training for them.
The Telegraph reports that the Ukrainian F-16s have been used in air defense missions so far, adding that an Ukrainian air force official “did not deny” the information obtained by the newspaper.
The claims follow Bloomberg’s report on Wednesday that the first of the F-16s had been delivered just before what its sources said was the deadline at the end of July. However, Bloomberg’s sources were not certain about whether Ukrainian pilots would be able to immediately begin operations on the “small” amount of F-16s delivered.
White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby declined to comment on the Bloomberg report during a press conference on Wednesday, saying that he would defer to the Ukrainian government for an official statement on whether the aircraft had been delivered. The Ukrainian government has yet to make any official statements about F-16 deliveries as of writing.
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabriellus Landsbergis said in a social media post on Wednesday: “F-16s in Ukraine. Another impossible thing turned out to be totally possible”, but did not elaborate.
While photographs reportedly depicting F-16s flying over Lviv appeared on Telegram later on Wednesday, open source investigators with the lost_warinua team say that the photographs appear to be forgeries.
Belgium, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands have collectively pledged to donate 79 F-16s to Ukraine, following U.S. President Joe Biden’s decision in May 2023 to authorize the donation of the fighters.
Prior to that approval, Kyiv had made repeated requests for F-16s since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion on 24 February 2022, claiming that they were more capable than the upgraded late Soviet-era aircraft like the MiG-29, Su-27, Su-24 and Su-25 currently in use by the Ukrainian Air Force.