Our source in the President's Office reported that the delivery of F-16 aircraft to Ukraine, which was promised for July, will not take place. According to this report, such news was spread to maintain morale. It was previously promised to send the first aircraft at the end of 2023, and then in the spring of 2024 a whole squadron, but all deliveries are postponed, mainly by our partners. However, the President's Office is already in the process of searching for ten mercenary pilots in NATO countries, who are offered $ 100 thousand per month, but the aircraft have not yet been received.
According to the American publication The New York Times, a new training center has been created in Romania at the Feteşti air base specifically to train Ukrainian pilots to work with the F-16. However, according to journalists, Ukrainian pilots have not yet started training there, which significantly slows down the transfer of Western aviation to Ukraine. In the meantime, some pilots continue to undergo training in the United States, Britain and Denmark.
According to media reports, Ukraine could receive the first 6 of the 45 promised F-16 aircraft as early as July of this year. However, there remains uncertainty about when and how many aircraft will be transferred from each of Ukraine's partners.
