The first shipments of F-16s finally arrived in Ukraine in the summer of 2024 after more than two years of lobbying by Kyiv. The multirole fighter jet has a long and proven operational history and Ukraine hopes it can make a difference in turning the tide of the air war. This article will examine the campaign for F-16s in Ukraine, the countries supplying them, and how Ukraine will use them. 

Why This Matters

As Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy put it, the arrival of the multirole jets represents a “new chapter” for the air force. The F-16’s versatility opens up tactical and strategic possibilities that the older Soviet aircraft couldn’t exploit. As the ongoing incursion in Kursk demonstrated, access to modern Western equipment allows Kyiv to seize the initiative. The F-16 won’t turn the tide alone, but it will be an important part of Ukraine’s approach to the conflict.

F-16 Overview

The F-16 is not a new aircraft, its first test flight occurred 50 years ago. The F-16 comes in many variants, the jets sent to Ukraine were part of a mid-life update carried out in the 1990s. A multirole fighter jet, the F-16’s main strength is its versatility. It can carry out air-to-air and air-to-ground missions. That means the F-16 can intercept and engage enemy aircraft or missiles, support friendly land units, and attack ground targets. It is highly maneuverable and has a good operational range. The F-16 represents a significant upgrade to the Soviet-era jets Ukraine previously relied on. 

Training and Delivery

Ukraine requested F-16s from the opening skirmishes of the conflict. Top Ukrainian pilots Andrii “Juice” Pilshchykov and Alexei “Moonfish” Mes spearheaded the lobbying effort in the United States. As Juice said in June 2023:

I believe it could be a real game changer for the counter-offensive and for the entire war, because the F-16 is capable of doing a lot of crucial work for our forces, for our resistance.

Pilshchykov died in a crash two months later. The United States and European nations were broadly sympathetic but had serious concerns over providing them and wanted to apply restrictions to their use. After the US gave the green light, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Norway pledged to donate their stockpiles of F-16s to Ukraine. Greece will also send decommissioned F-16s to the United States for upgrades and delivery to Ukraine. There were also logistical hurdles to overcome. It’s not simply a matter of delivering dozens of F-16s to Ukraine as pilots and maintenance crews require training.

For Ukrainian air personnel used to Soviet aircraft like the MiG-29 and Su-27, transitioning to the F-16 wasn’t so straightforward. It can take years to learn how to effectively pilot the F-16, time Kyiv simply does not have. Additionally, there are only limited open spaces at training centers in the United States and Europe. 

Denmark, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States have all provided training for a limited number of Ukrainian pilots. A training center in Romania opened in November 2023, but the pilot training pipeline still isn’t large enough for Ukraine’s liking. 

F-16s in Ukraine

Achieving air superiority has been a cornerstone of military doctrine for the better part of a century. One of the reasons the war in Ukraine has dragged on for so long is that neither Russia nor Ukraine enjoys mastery of the skies. Ukraine’s air defenses and air force have held their own against Russia’s aircraft in a defensive sense. The F-16 could provide the means to operate offensively in the battle for air supremacy. Their presence alone could force the Russians to reposition ground assets further away. Moreover, the F-16s sent to Ukraine are fitted with upgrades for electronic warfare. 

The F-16s have only just begun flying combat missions in Ukraine and are still in very limited numbers so their impact on the war is difficult to judge. At least one F-16 has been lost so far, the aforementioned pilot, Col. Alexei “Moonfish” Mes perished in the crash. NATO members pledged to send around 60 jets but Kyiv requests at least 130. Given the training and delivery bottlenecks, it will be some time before Ukraine’s F-16 fleet is large enough to make a difference. 

Conclusion

The F-16 alone will not determine the war’s outcome. However, if delivered in sufficient numbers and with the personnel to fly and maintain them, the F-16 will play a key role in Ukraine’s ongoing effort to repel the Russian invasion. As the incursion at Kursk shows, the value of seizing the initiative can scarcely be overstated. Ukraine survived the early onslaught with Soviet weapons, it hopes to win with Western hardware.

 

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