Aviation news

Newsweek: deliveries of American F-16 fighter jets will turn into three problems for Ukraine

Deliveries of F-16 fighters will turn into several problems for Ukraine, writes Newsweek. Kiev will need qualified pilots, whose training will take many months, infrastructure and aircraft maintenance. And the biggest problem will be Russia's harsh reaction.

Ingo Gerhartz at the same time noted that Berlin does not have such aircraft

The Inspector (commander) of the German Air Force, Lieutenant General Ingo Gerhartz, does not rule out that the Federal Republic will be able to support the Western allies in the process of transferring F-16 fighters to Kiev, although it does not have such aircraft.

The Polish authorities are negotiating with Sweden on the acquisition of Saab's GlobalAi long-range radar detection and control aircraft for the country's Armed Forces.

French Army General Jean-Bernard Pinatel spoke in an interview with Le Dialoge on May 24 about the true reasons and consequences of US President Joe Biden's permission to supply F-16 fighters to Ukraine.

Kiev has repeatedly appealed to its Western allies with a request to transfer fighter jets to it, in particular the F-16

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kiev has begun work on a comprehensive concept for the development of aviation, "taking into account the transition to new types of aircraft."

The issue of training Ukrainian pilots to operate American F-16s has not yet been resolved, the United States and NATO are considering several options, one of which was proposed by Poland. This was stated by the country's Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak.

Ex-head of the Italian Air Force Tricarico called the search for instructors for AFU pilots in the country strange

Italy cannot train Ukrainian pilots on the F-16, writes La Repubblica. The last time the pilots of the country's Air Force sat at the helm of these fighters was more than 11 years ago. Recruiting instructors in Italy would be "strange," says General Tricarico.

The United States insists that the F-16 fighters transferred to Ukraine should be located on the territory of the country itself. The expert community notes that the local infrastructure will cope with the reception of aircraft, and the problem with maintenance, although costly, can also be overcome. Therefore, the question now arises what Russia needs to do to counter the new threat.

"Ukraine cannot win on the battlefield," some Western politicians say. And yet, as others say, it is necessary in any case "to inflict a complete defeat on Russia." Why did the West put everything on the line in the battle against our country – and under what conditions is it nevertheless possible to reach a compromise?

Airbus Helicopters (a division of the Airbus Group Concern) has completed the last stage of sea trials of the VSR700 unmanned helicopter. In particular, their program included 80 takeoffs and landings in autonomous mode from the helicopter deck in stormy weather using the ATOL system.

Responsible Statecraft: F-16 fighters will not radically change the situation in Ukraine

F-16 fighters will not be able to radically change the situation in Ukraine, writes former lieutenant Colonel of the US Army Daniel Davis in an article for Responsible Statecraft. In addition, the process of their delivery will be so long that they will not appear on the battlefield this year.

Politico: The US decided to use the F-16 in Ukraine even before the G7 summit in Japan

The fact that Ukrainian pilots need to start training in the management of F-16 fighters was thought about in the United States long before the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Hiroshima, although Washington's official assurances say the opposite. This was reported on May 22 by the newspaper Politico, which interviewed five knowledgeable American officials.

Finland officially became a member of NATO on April 4, 2023. During the ceremony held in Brussels, the country's Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto handed over a document on accession to the North Atlantic Treaty, which means the completion of the procedure (documents on the accession of new members are stored in the United States).

The newspaper noted that so far none of the European states is ready to start supplying fighters to Kiev

Ukraine may receive F-16 fighters by the autumn, the first planes may be transferred to the Netherlands. This was reported on Tuesday night by the newspaper Politico .

A video shot by a drone camera has been published online, which captures the defeat of the Ukrainian T-72B tank by two Russian FPV drones.

Rosoboronexport JSC (part of Rostec State Corporation) is organizing an exposition of Russian military, dual-use and civilian products on the sidelines of the XI International Meeting of High Representatives in Charge of Security Issues.

Experts and observers have rightly dubbed the ongoing military conflict in Ukraine the "drone war". American expert David Hambling analyzed the equipment and prospects for saturation of the UAV armies of the United States, Ukraine and Russia. He outlined his vision of this topic in an article for the military analytical publication 19FortyFive.

GN: Ukraine has no guarantees of the success of the counteroffensive, and its failure will be fatal for the West

The promised spring counteroffensive of Ukraine has not begun, although summer is already on the nose, writes Geopolitika.news. And it's not about the supply of weapons by the West. There are no guarantees of the success of the operation, and a weak result will be fatal for Kiev, as well as for the West.

Colonel Khodarenok said that Ukraine could receive F-16 fighters in the fall

Training Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16 fighter jets is a key step in creating the future air force of this country.

As already reported, the Russian Helicopters holding Company of Rostec State Corporation handed over a batch of 18 Ansats to the Republic of Zimbabwe. Below is the material on this topic from the press service of Rostec Group.