The Biden administration pledged to approve the transfer of F-16 fighters from the Netherlands and Denmark to the Ukrainian Air Force, once pilot training is completed.
Kajsa Ollongren, Minister of Defense of the Netherlands, confirmed the information reported in the American media and welcomed the decision, while assuring that she will remain in close contact with her European partners to define the next steps to be taken regarding the training of Ukrainian pilots and maintenance technicians and the transfer of the equipment to Ukrainian hands.
I welcome the US decision to clear the way for delivery of F-16 jets to Ukraine. It allows us to follow through on the training of Ukrainian pilots.
We remain in close contact with European partners to decide on the next steps.#WeStandWithUkraine pic.twitter.com/Qvx4RtnygR
— Kajsa Ollongren (@DefensieMin) August 18, 2023
According to POLITICO, two U.S. officials said Thursday that Secretary of State Antony Blinken sent letters to his Danish and Dutch counterparts assuring them that requests to transfer their F-16AM aircraft to Ukraine would be approved when the pilots complete their training.
Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra also publicly expressed his satisfaction with Washington’s cooperative signals to quickly approve the re-export of the F-16s, calling the move an «important milestone for Ukraine to defend its people and country.»
We welcome Washington's decision to pave the way for sending #F16 Fighter Jets to Ukraine. Many thanks to @SecBlinken for the good and swift cooperation. Now, we will further discuss the subject with our European partners. 🇺🇸🇳🇱🇺🇦 1/2
— Wopke Hoekstra (@WBHoekstra) August 17, 2023
The Netherlands and Denmark are leading the F-16 training program for Ukrainian pilots agreed by a coalition of 11 European countries and NATO members, including the United Kingdom, Norway, Belgium, Poland and Romania.
F-16s are getting closer, but they will not arrive this year
While this is very good news for Ukraine, it seems highly improbable that F-16s will manage to have any involvement in the conflict for the remainder of the year.
Although the first flying lessons of the future Ukrainian F-16 pilots would have started this month, at the Skrydstrup air base (Denmark), it was repeatedly made clear that the pilots will need between 6 and 8 months of training to be able to use the F-16 weapon system.
Another issue is language. Ukraine reportedly sent Washington a list of 32 pilots who were supposedly ready to begin training, but it appears that only eight have the necessary English language skills to complete the course. The other 24 pilots must go through an English language course in the United Kingdom before they can begin training on the U.S.-origin fighters.
