F-16 for Ukraine - Air Force comment on delay from Denmark
Yurii Ihnat, spokesperson for the Ukrainian Air Force (photo: Getty Images)
Yurii Ihnat, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian Air Force, urged to look at official sources, in particular, regarding the information that Denmark will delay the delivery of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine for six months.
"We look at the website of the Danish Ministry of Defense. There are no statements there. The publication refers to some of its sources... Obviously, things are not that simple," he said.
He added that the Ukrainian soldiers were undergoing the training process in an extremely short time.
"No other country has gone through this process like this. Ukraine was given the green light, and Ukraine is making progress at an accelerated pace. I cannot confirm the sources and what is happening there, because it is not disclosed too much. Let's look at official sources. Do the partners say anything? No, they don't. There is no need to make up some kind of catastrophe or betrayal out of this," Ihnat emphasized.
He added that Ukraine has a gradual action plan that is being implemented.
"The pilots are being trained. We would like to receive the planes by the end of the year, but we have already talked about the "spring" date... Ukraine is preparing the infrastructure and training pilots. There was no point in delivering the planes to Ukraine by the end of last year. What for? To keep them standing here?" the Air Force spokesperson said.
Delayed delivery of F-16s
Today, a Danish publication cited the Danish Ministry of Defense as saying that the delivery of F-16 fighter jets from Denmark to Ukraine is delayed. The delay is estimated to be about six months.
F-16s for Ukraine
Earlier, Ukraine's allies announced the creation of an aviation coalition to provide the country with modern fighters, including F-16s. The coalition was led by the Netherlands and Denmark.
Recently, it was officially reported that the first group of Ukrainian pilots completed a basic training program in the UK and began training on F-16 fighters in Denmark.
On December 22, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said that the Dutch government had decided to prepare the first 18 F-16 fighter jets for delivery to Ukraine.
Yesterday, Norway announced that the first Norwegian F-16s had arrived in Denmark to be used for Ukrainian pilots' training.
