President Joe Biden told G-7 leaders on Friday that the United States would support a joint effort with allies and partners to train Ukrainian pilots in fourth-generation fighter jets, including the F-16. This was reported by CNN, citing a senior US administration official.
According to him, the training of Ukrainian pilots will most likely take place not in the United States, but in Europe. American instructors will train Ukrainians together with colleagues from NATO countries. The training will last several months.
“As (the pilots) prepare in the coming months, our coalition of countries participating in this effort will decide when these fighters will be provided, how many of them will be and who will provide them,” the official said.
According to him, “to date, the United States, its allies and partners have been focused on providing Ukraine with most of the weapons and training necessary to conduct offensive operations this spring and summer.” “Discussions on improving the Ukrainian Air Force reflect our long-term commitment to Ukraine’s self-defense,” the official added.
In March of this year, 2 Ukrainian pilots arrived at the US Air Force base in Tucson, Arizona, where American instructors are to assess their skills using flight simulators and determine how long it will take the Ukrainian pilots to learn to fly the F-16. Congress allocated funds for such training in the 2023 budget.
According to CNN, the Biden administration signaled to European NATO allies that the United States would allow them to export F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine.
Recently, the White House has come under increasing pressure from members of Congress and allies to help Ukraine get 4th generation fighter jets to fend off increased Russian air attacks.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s spokesman said this week that Britain and the Netherlands were seeking to form an international coalition not only to buy military planes for Ukraine, but also to train Ukrainian pilots there. .
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