Central and Eastern European officials told Politico that they do not rule out Ukraine receiving the F-16 in the fall.
According to US Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, the delivery of the fighters will take several months. The US presidential administration has already provided a plan to equip the Ukrainian Air Force with American-made jet aircraft or other fourth-generation aircraft. However, analysts warn that the planes are not a panacea for all of Ukraine’s problems and have vulnerabilities that Moscow knows and can exploit.
“Getting the F-16 will boost morale and add some limited combat capabilities. But (no fourth-generation) plane will change the war’s course”, says former US Air Force pilot Robert Hopkins. At the same time, Ukrainian military expert Ihor Romanenko suggests that using three F-16 brigades (100-200 aircraft), five F-15s, and the parallel use of drones will help achieve significant changes in air combat.
Politico indicates that the Netherlands may be the first to send F-16s to Ukraine. The country has 18 F-16 fighter jets that are not in use.