Will we see Western fighters in the sky of Ukraine soon?

Although the US and UK have ruled out sending F-16s to Ukraine for now, the Dutch government has said it would consider supplying the planes to Kiev if requested.

Meanwhile, Ukraine received “positive signals” from Poland, which confirmed its willingness to pass F-16 fighter jets in coordination with NATO, according to a Ukrainian official.

decision made?

Ukraine’s former defense minister, Oleksiy Reznikov, expressed confidence that Western allies would agree to the country’s latest arms request — warplanes to counter Russian forces that launched their military operation in Ukraine nearly a year ago.

Speaking at a news conference in Kyiv, Reznikov said Ukraine had already received everything from “my wish list,” except for planes.

He added, “There will be planes as well. The question is exactly what kind of plane… You can say that this mission has already been completed.”

How will Ukraine benefit from the American F-16s and other Western types if they are provided to it?

F-16 fighters

• The F-16 is a highly maneuverable, versatile fighter that can reach speeds of more than 1,200 miles per hour.
• It can locate targets in all weather conditions and detect low-flying aircraft.
• These fighters can fly more than 500 miles, deliver their payload with great precision, defend themselves against enemy aircraft and return to their starting point safely.

Former British intelligence officer Philip Ingram told Sky News: “I think it is likely that we will start to see more Western military aircraft being provided to Ukraine. The Ukrainians need them.”

“The difficulty is that pilots cannot switch from one aircraft to another, especially in the midst of the intensity of live combat operations,” Ingram said.

And he added, “But what we find in all fields, with the arrival of the Ukrainians and their learning to take over and operate Western equipment, is that they do in weeks what Western pilots take in months.”

In response to a question about the impact of a squadron of F-16s led by the Ukrainians, he said that this would have a psychological effect on the Russian forces.

He added that the Russians “will face a combat system that they know can outperform them at any stage,” noting that this will push Russian air operations to retreat.

MiG 29

• The Soviet MiG-29 is already in use by the Ukrainian Air Force and serves as a multi-role combat aircraft.
• The collapse and disintegration of the Soviet Union led to the possession of a number of European countries to stockpiles of MiG-29 aircraft, including Poland.

• In March last year, just weeks after Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, Poland offered to supply its entire fleet of MiG-29s to Kyiv in exchange for F-16s from the United States. At the time, the Pentagon said the offer was “unacceptable” and “raises serious concerns for NATO.”
• However, in the ensuing months, Ukraine launched massively successful counterattacks, donating several heavy weapons that might have been considered off the table, such as HIMARS missile systems and tanks.
• One potential problem with the Polish MiG-29, Ingram says, is that it has been upgraded with NATO communications systems, meaning it would need to be removed to prevent it falling into Russian hands.
• Asked about a possible timetable for deciding whether to deliver F-16s, MiG-29s or other aircraft to Ukraine, the former intelligence officer pointed to the upcoming Ramstein Air Base meeting in mid-February which is expected to focus on aviation.

Eurofighter Typhoon fighters

• The Eurofighter Typhoon can fly at high speeds of Mach 1.8 – 2222 mph, and perform a variety of roles including high intensity combat.
• The Typhoon was first deployed with the British Royal Air Force over Libya in 2011, and has since been used in Iraq and Syria since 2015 as Western countries sought to strike targets of the terrorist organization ISIS.
• The UK is among several countries that have stockpiles of Typhoon, along with Germany, Italy and Spain.
• Britain has so far ruled out sending Typhoons to Ukraine, with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s spokesman saying they are “very sophisticated and it takes months to learn how to fly them”.

PA-200 Tornado fighters

• The British-built two-seat fighter first entered service in the 1980s and has been used by several countries including the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany.
• The speed of the twin-engine Tornado is 990 miles per hour, the combat range is 863 miles, and its payload is more than 18,000, depending on the mission assigned to it. The aircraft is equipped with anti-radar missiles, laser-guided paveway bombs, sea eagle anti-ship missiles, and air-to-air missiles.
• Among the most prominent areas in which the plane participated in war operations were Kosovo, Libya, and Afghanistan, and against the terrorist organization “ISIS” in Syria and Iraq.

Ukrainian diplomat Andrei Melnik called on German Chancellor Olaf Schultz to donate Tornado fighters to his country to help Kyiv in the war against Russia. He said in a tweet on Twitter: “Although it is an old jet, it is still very powerful (…) Why not deliver the Tornado to Ukraine?”