[Regnum] During the military operations, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) lost the first F-16 fighter, the press service of the General Staff of the AFU reported on August 29.
According to the agency's representatives, the aircraft were used to repel a missile attack by Russian servicemen. During the operation, contact with one of the pilots was lost; it was later discovered that the fighter had crashed.
“A special commission of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, working in the area where the plane crashed, is intended to determine the causes of the accident,” the publication states.
The Wall Street Journal reported that one of the F-16 fighters transferred to Ukraine crashed on August 26. According to the source, initial data indicates that the plane was not shot down. Most likely, the crash occurred due to pilot error.
As reported by the Regnum news agency, an informed source had previously reported that the Russian Armed Forces may have destroyed the first American F-16 fighter jet in Ukraine during a strike on the Starokostiantyniv airfield in the Khmelnytsky region. The aircraft were on the airfield territory during the strikes. They then took off and returned two to three hours later. One of the F-16s may have been destroyed during a second strike on the airfield.
On August 4, The Economist reported that the Kiev regime had received the first ten F-16 fighters. According to it, the Ukrainian Armed Forces should receive another ten such aircraft by the end of the year. By the end of 2025, Kiev should have 79 such aircraft.
American political scientist Mark Sleboda reported that the F-16s transferred to the Ukrainian Armed Forces are significantly outdated. He added that these aircraft in Ukraine will have to confront the Russian air defense system, which is the best in the world. The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, noted that the supply of American fighters will not become a "magic pill " for the Kiev regime that can influence the course of military operations.
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First F-16 Crashed. Causes Under Investigation
An F-16 fighter jet crashed while repelling a large-scale attack by Russian missiles and drones on Ukrainian cities on August 26.
Just three weeks after the first American-made aircraft arrived in Ukraine, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed the loss of the first of them, the pilot died in the crash. The cause of the disaster is being investigated.
VERSIONS OF THE CRASH
"During the air battle, the F-16 aircraft demonstrated their high efficiency, with onboard weapons shooting down four enemy cruise missiles," the General Staff said in a statement. "During the approach to the next target, contact was lost with one of the aircraft. As it turned out later, the aircraft crashed, and the pilot died."
Earlier, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing a source, that the plane was not shot down by enemy fire, but most likely crashed due to pilot error.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that on Monday, August 26, Kyiv used F-16s for the first time to shoot down Russian missiles and drones.
The Ukrainian Air Force then reported 236 air attack weapons — 127 missiles and 109 attack drones — with which Russian troops attacked Ukraine. They managed to shoot down 102 missiles, including one Kinzhal, and 99 drones.
The Ukrainian military command is considering various versions of the crash of the F-16 fighter, including pilot error and "friendly fire" from its own air defense, the Ukrainian service of the Voice of America reported, citing an unnamed representative of the Ukrainian Air Force.
"But the exact reasons will only be known after the investigation is completed," journalists quote their source.
DEATH OF THE PILOT
Lutsk Mayor Igor Polischuk reported the death of pilot Oleksiy Mes this week. Following the news of the loss of the F-16, the Ukrainian Air Force confirmed that Mes died on August 26 while repelling a massive Russian combined missile and air strike.
Mes was one of the first Ukrainian pilots to undergo F-16 training. His call sign was Moonfish, and he frequently appeared in the media and visited Washington, lobbying for the fighters to be sent, the WSJ reports. The Air Force said the pilot killed three cruise missiles and one attack drone.
The news that one of Ukraine's few F-16s had been lost was a major blow to Kyiv, which had been asking for the jets for months before US President Joe Biden gave the green light to European countries to sell the fighters last year, the WSJ said.