Rada Deputy Bezuglaya: F-16 fighter jet shot down by Patriot missile
An F-16 fighter jet of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) was shot down by friendly fire. This was stated by Verkhovna Rada deputy Maryana Bezugla on her Telegram channel.
According to her information, the plane was hit by a missile from a Patriot anti-aircraft missile system, previously transferred to Kyiv by Western partners.
F-16 shot down due to lack of coordination between units
At the same time, the parliamentarian pointed out that official reports cite pilot error as the cause of the crash.
Later, the Pentagon’s deputy spokesperson Sabrina Singh refused to confirm this claim, only noting that Kyiv had not asked Washington to take part in the investigation of the incident.
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The F-16 transferred to the Ukrainian Armed Forces crashed on August 26. The incident occurred several weeks after the first American-made aircraft arrived in Ukraine.
Russia Allows F-16 Destruction on Ground
Retired Colonel Viktor Baranets noted that the F-16 transferred to the Ukrainian Armed Forces was destroyed on the day of a massive strike by Iskander missiles on the Kolomyia military airfield in the Ivano-Frankivsk region. He noted that unofficial information appeared in Ukrainian social networks about an American fighter jet in a hangar “covered” by a Russian missile. Also, Lutsk City Council deputy Igor Polischuk reported an incident on August 26 involving Ukrainian Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Oleksiy Mes, who was undergoing F-16 training in the United States. These messages were later deleted.
“Pilot Mes of the 204th tactical aviation brigade did not even have time to taxi his aircraft out of the hangar,” the expert said. He explained that the pilot did not manage to escape.
At the same time, Baranets noted, the destruction of the F-16 in Ukraine was a disgrace for the United States.
But admitting that the plane could have been destroyed by a Russian missile in the parking lot, or even more so by a Russian fighter in the sky, is like slapping yourself in the nose.
A reward has been announced for the first destroyed F-16
In July, the Russian company FORES announced a reward for the destruction of the first F-16. The company’s director, Ilya Potanin, promised that the serviceman who shot down the American fighter would be paid 15 million rubles.
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The businessman also specified that bonuses would also be given to those who shot down subsequent F-16s or F-15s in the special military operation (SVO) zone. However, Potanin did not name the amount of payments for the remaining aircraft.
Before this, the author of the Telegram channel Fighterbomber, a former military pilot reportedthat Russian intelligence has begun a “hunt” for F-16 airfields and the fighters themselves.
Hunting season is open. A quick goal is needed. And there are plenty of people willing to score it
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