Washington [US], August 25: The US decided to directly train Ukrainian pilots to fly the F-16 instead of just acting as a backup for European countries as previously announced, while Norway agreed to supply this aircraft to Ukraine.
CNN on August 25 quoted Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder as saying that after the English training course for Ukrainian pilots in September, they will receive instruction to fly F-16 fighter jets from October at the air base. Morris National Guard in Tucson (Arizona, USA).
Ryder said there is no information on the number of Ukrainian pilots participating in the training, but it is expected that there will be many pilots and several dozen maintenance staff.
Ukrainian servicemen will learn English at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio (Texas), where the Defense English Center is located. A US official said Ukraine has sent a list of approximately 32 pilots ready for training, but most are not fluent in English, an important need because the instructions and documents of the F-16 aircraft are all used . use English.
It is not clear how long the training will take. Ryder said that new US pilots usually take about eight months to learn to fly the F-16, but experienced people only need five months.
The US has changed its mind from the previous announcement that it only supports training if European countries are overloaded. Mr. Ryder said the decision was changed after realizing that training in Europe would eventually reach its limit. "We want to do everything we can to make this effort as fast as possible in support of Ukraine," Ryder said.
This week, Denmark and the Netherlands pledged to deliver F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine. In which, Denmark said it would send 19 F-16s, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the Dutch side would provide 42, although Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte did not specify.
Most recently, during his visit to Kyiv on August 24, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store also pledged to sponsor F-16 aircraft for Ukraine and will announce the number and time later, according to Reuters.
Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley said on August 24 that Ukraine may receive F-16 aircraft in the not too distant future. Meanwhile, the White House announced on the same day that President Joe Biden and President Zelensky had discussed training Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16s and expedited approval for countries to deliver their F-16s. for Ukraine.
Denmark and the Netherlands also lead a coalition to train Ukrainian pilots, and according to Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov, the country's pilots and technicians have already begun the training process. He added that the training will take a minimum of six months but that is up to the instructor.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper