The first F-16s have arrived in Ukraine, finally giving Kyiv the venerable fourth-generation multirole fighter it has sought for over a year, according to multiple reports.
Bloomberg first reported the news, which was later reported by the Associated Press and Reuters.
“F-16s in Ukraine. Another impossible thing turned out to be totally possible,” Gabrielius Landsbergis, Lithuania’s foreign minister, wrote on social media.
Denmark and the Netherlands were due to provide the first jets, followed by Belgium and Norway—some 60 F-16s in total over the next few years. It is unclear how many F-16s have arrived in Ukraine if the reports prove accurate. NATO allies have indicated the process will be gradual, and Bloomberg and the AP reported Ukraine has received only a small number of F-16s so far.
The Pentagon and the National Security Council declined to comment on whether Kyiv now possesses F-16s and referred questions to Ukraine. A spokesperson for the Ukrainian Air Force did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Even if Ukraine now has F-16s, many questions remain. U.S. and allied officials have not detailed maintenance plans for the jets or publicly revealed which munitions the aircraft will be equipped with.
U.S. officials and airpower experts have said F-16s are not a panacea, noting the presence of advanced Russian surface-to-air missiles, the difficulty required to master the F-16’s full capabilities, and the need to learn Western airpower doctrine.
“It’s not going to be the … golden bullet, that all of a sudden, they have F-16s, and now they’re going to go out and gain air superiority,” U.S. Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa Commander Gen. James B. Hecker said July 30. “But we started the clock, and I think that’s a good start.”
The U.S. plans to train a total of 12 Ukrainian pilots this fiscal year, as well as “dozens” of maintainers. Other pilots and maintainers are training in Europe. Some of the pilots trained in the U.S. have graduated their course with the 162nd Wing of the Arizona Air National Guard, the Air Force’s foreign F-16 pilot school, and moved on to Europe.
U.S. officials have declined to say how many pilots the U.S. has graduated from F-16 training, citing operational security, nor has the U.S. confirmed which munitions Ukraine will receive. However, The Wall Street Journal reported Ukraine would receive AIM-120 AMRAAMs and AIM-9X air-to-air missiles, as well as AGM-88 HARM anti-radiation missiles, JDAM Extended-Range guided bombs, and Small Diameter Bombers. Ukraine is already known to employ HARMs, JDAMs, and SDBs from its MiGs and Sukhoi jets, though the weapons are less effective on those aircraft than they would be if they were employed by an F-16.
U.S.-origin weapons have also come with policy stipulations from the Biden administration on how they can be used. It remains to be seen whether the U.S. and its allies will authorize Ukraine to engage aircraft or ground target sites inside of Russia with F-16s. The U.S. has allowed Ukraine to use American weapons inside Russia in only limited cases.
A Pentagon spokesperson told Air & Space Forces Magazine that the U.S. would provide weapons for the F-16s but did not say which ones.
“The United States is committed to working with our Allies and partners in the Air Force Capability Coalition, including co-leads Denmark and the Netherlands, to provide Ukraine with the weapons and equipment it needs for its F-16s,” the spokesperson said. “This includes precision munitions designed to enhance Ukraine’s air combat capabilities to defend its airspace and carry out effective air-to-ground operations. Some of these weapons will come directly from DoD or Allied stocks, while others may be procured through contracts with defense manufacturers.”