The government of the Netherlands will give Ukraine six more F-16 fighter jets than it originally planned. The 18 jets earmarked for Ukraine earlier will be supplemented with six aircraft the country has planned to sell.
The news was announced by Hromadske.
In August 2023, Washington gave official assurances to Denmark and the Netherlands that the United States would speed up the approval of requests for the transfer of F-16s to be sent to Ukraine once the pilots had completed training.
As of December 2023, the first group of Ukrainian pilots has mastered the basic training program in the United Kingdom and is currently training to fly F-16 fighter jets in Denmark.
What is known about the F-16 fighter jet
The F-16 fighter jet is the best option for Ukraine because it’s lightweight and cheap to maintain. At the same time, the F-16 is able to accomplish virtually any aerial mission, from air combat to high-precision bombing.
Specifications:
- Length: 15 m
- Height: 5 m
- Crew: 1 pilot
- Maximum speed: 2+ Mach (2,410 km/h).
- Wingspan: 9.5 m
- Thrust-to-weight ratio: 1.1
- Maximum takeoff weight: 21.7 t
- Stations: up to 13
- Weight: 9.2 t
The F-16 costs $43–55 million, depending on the modification.
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