The first delivery of the F-16 fighter jets from NATO allies has arrived in Ukraine, in a long-awaited move that may boost war-torn nation’s ability to repel Russian attacks.The deadline for the transfer of the US-made warplanes was the end of this month and it has been respected, according to people familiar with the matter, who spoke under condition of anonymity. The number of jets is small, they said.It’s not clear whether Ukrainian pilots, who have trained with their western allies over the past months, will be able to immediately use the warplanes or the process will take longer, the people said.Spokeswoman for Ukraine’s defense ministry Diana Davityan declined to comment.It took more than a year to get here. President Joe Biden dropped his opposition to sending F-16s to Ukraine in May 2023, after repeated pleas by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and NATO allies to allow their transfer.That came alongside intense debate as to whether F-16s would give Ukraine any decisive advantage. Veteran pilots [told](https://archive.ph/o/hMrBe/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-05-28/f-16s-vs-russian-air-defenses-jets-at-risk-but-can-still-help-ukraine) Bloomberg last May that the jets wouldn’t be the game changer Ukraine claims.
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The first delivery of the F-16 fighter jets from NATO allies has arrived in Ukraine, in a long-awaited move that may boost war-torn nation’s ability to repel Russian attacks.The deadline for the transfer of the US-made warplanes was the end of this month and it has been respected, according to people familiar with the matter, who spoke under condition of anonymity. The number of jets is small, they said.It’s not clear whether Ukrainian pilots, who have trained with their western allies over the past months, will be able to immediately use the warplanes or the process will take longer, the people said.Spokeswoman for Ukraine’s defense ministry Diana Davityan declined to comment.It took more than a year to get here. President Joe Biden dropped his opposition to sending F-16s to Ukraine in May 2023, after repeated pleas by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and NATO allies to allow their transfer.That came alongside intense debate as to whether F-16s would give Ukraine any decisive advantage. Veteran pilots [told](https://archive.ph/o/hMrBe/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-05-28/f-16s-vs-russian-air-defenses-jets-at-risk-but-can-still-help-ukraine) Bloomberg last May that the jets wouldn’t be the game changer Ukraine claims.
The move has been [bedeviled](https://archive.ph/o/hMrBe/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-07-12/ukraine-s-f-16-ambitions-snarled-by-language-barrier-runways-and-parts) by delays, questions around spare parts, and a language barrier between Ukrainian pilots and their foreign trainers. Planners have also worried that the country doesn’t have enough runways — and those it does have are vulnerable to Russian [attacks.So](http://attacks.So) far, Ukrainian [pilots have trained](https://archive.ph/o/hMrBe/https://intelligence.house.gov/uploadedfiles/5.20.24_joint_letter_to_dod_for_urgent_ukraine_aid.pdf) with F-16s abroad including in the US. In the meantime, the battlefield has changed, with both sides increasingly relying on cheap drones and Russia bolstering its air defenses.Even if small at first, the transfer of jets should over time help Kyiv build the capacity to put a dent in Russia’s aerial superiority, which has allowed the Kremlin to decimate the country’s power infrastructure, leading to rolling blackouts.
What are these jets supposed to do? Shoot down Iskander and Kinzhal missiles?
Nice
Falcons in the sky soon Vlad!
Time to rock it like a hurricane.
Ride it like you stole it
Here come the hundreds of pixelated photos of their supposed crash sites
game changer
F-16? \What F-16? There were never F-16 sent to Ukraine. Nah, it was just talk. Russia, you’ve got nothing to fear.
In other news, dolphin patrols of the Kerch strait have now been doubled
Stop telling everyone what you’re doing.
Don’t say it out loud. Russia gonna bomb every civilian use airport and claim they destroy F-16.
Please pleas please dont lose them immediately. I know the skies are rough.
It’s like Return of the King, when all hope seems lost but then the Eagles arrive and establish air superiority.
Coming up today or tomorrow warning of 1000 warnings from Russia.
Fuck ‘em up, boys.