Ukraine finally receives its very first F-16 planes

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced Sunday that he had finally received his very first F-16 fighter jets, the American-made warplanes that Kiev has been waiting for years to receive, hoping to use them to repel the advance of Russian forces.

This announcement comes as the situation remains tense on the front lines. Ukraine announced Sunday the evacuation of children and their parents from several localities in the Donetsk region (east), close to areas where Russia has claimed new advances in recent days.

Since the beginning of the Russian invasion in February 2022, kyiv has been pleading for the delivery of F-16s in the hope of ending Russian domination in the air and better protecting its cities and troops from the incessant bombing.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in front of two F-16 fighters during a ceremony at an undisclosed location in Ukraine, August 4, 2024 © AFP – Sergei SUPINSKY

“We have had hundreds of meetings and negotiations” with allies to obtain the planes and strengthen the country's air defenses, and “we have often heard the words 'it is impossible' in response,” Zelensky said at a ceremony at an undisclosed location in Ukraine.

“Now it is reality, reality in our skies. F-16s are in Ukraine,” he said. “I am proud of our guys who … have already started using them for our country.”

The American-made planes, touted for their precision, speed and range, are considered the crown jewel in a sprawling list of military hardware that Ukraine has requested from its backers in an attempt to repel the advance of Russian forces on its soil.

Mr. Zelensky did not disclose the number of aircraft received by kyiv, saying only that it was “insufficient”, nor the number of Ukrainian pilots trained in the West to fly and maintain these aircraft.

“The positive thing is that we are expecting additional F-16s” and that “many of our guys are being trained,” the Ukrainian president assured.

AFP journalists saw at least two F-16s flying over the site during the ceremony.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (D) in front of an F-16 fighter during a ceremony at an undisclosed location in Ukraine, August 4, 2024 © AFP – Sergei SUPINSKY

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Behind Volodymyr Zelensky, two other gray aircraft resembling F-16s were placed on the ground, partially covered with camouflage nets and their tails emblazoned with the national coat of arms, the trident.

In mid-May, President Zelensky declared in an interview with AFP that he needed 120 to 130 of these devices to achieve parity with the Russian aviation.

Ukraine's partners have, however, promised to send fewer than 100 F-16s to date, delivery of which is likely to be spread over several years, after extensive training of the pilots who will use them.

– Moscow minimizes –

Neither the delivery date nor the country that supplied this first batch have been revealed.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced on July 10 the start of the transfer of F-16s to Ukraine, “from Denmark and the Netherlands”.

F-16 fighter jets delivered to Ukraine take flight during a ceremony at an undisclosed location in Ukraine on August 4, 2024 © AFP – Sergei SUPINSKY

While rumors of the imminent delivery of the F-16s had been circulating for days, Moscow warned last week that the jets would be “shot down” in Ukraine, assuring that they would not have “a significant impact” on the front lines.

A series of recent Russian strikes on Ukrainian air bases has raised questions about Kiev's ability to protect the multi-million dollar aircraft.

In early July, Russia claimed to have destroyed five military aircraft in an attack on an air base in central Ukraine.

Following the bombing, Ukrainian military correspondents criticized the air force's top brass, saying the planes had been parked in the open without adequate protection.

The Ukrainian air force relies on an aging fleet of Soviet-era MiG-29s and Sukhoi jets, worn out by more than two years of demanding combat missions.

Ukrainian soldiers walk past F-16 fighters after a ceremony at a secret location in Ukraine, August 4, 2024 © AFP – Sergei SUPINSKY

France announced in June that it would supply Kiev with French Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets this year, without specifying their number.

After Moscow's claim of territorial advances in east in recent days, the governor of Donetsk announced on Sunday that he would have to evacuate a total of “744 children with their parents from four communities to safer regions of Ukraine.”

The governor has called on civilians to leave the region in recent weeks due to an increase in Russian bombings.

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