From Aviation HQ@2:292/854 to All on Monday, August 21, 2023 23:26:23
Denmark will donate nineteen F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine. This was said by Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Sunday during a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at Skrydstrup Air Base in Denmark.
The actual delivery will only take place after a few months. Ukrainian pilots must first be trained in the use of the fighter jets. That training has already started, according to Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov. Airports in Ukraine must also be adapted for the arrival of the F-16s.
The Netherlands will also provide Ukraine with F-16s. Demissionary Prime Minister Mark Rutte could not say on Sunday how many aircraft it concerns or when they will be delivered. The F-16s will become redundant because they will be replaced by F-35s. The Netherlands still has 42 F-16s, of which 24 are operational. Not all of them go to Ukraine. According to Rutte, some will be used for training Ukrainians in Denmark and later in Romania.
According to Zelensky, Rutte has already discussed the exact number that the Netherlands can provide. On X, formerly Twitter, he said after the conversation with Rutte that he expects to get all 42 F-16s.