KYIV: Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov has said that Ukrainian pilots have started training on F-16 aircraft, bringing Kyiv closer to obtaining a long-sought after military hardware it says is necessary to counter Moscow’s air superiority.
Reznikov said that in addition to the pilots, a number of Ukrainian technicians and engineers are also training.
He said that would not say when the training will be completed but minimal term of training is 6 months, CNN reported on Sunday.
He said the instructors would announce the training completion when they are satisfied the pilots, technicians, and engineers had learned new skills.
The minister said that trainees will also get English-language training in technical terminology.
He further said that it was important to determine what type of weapons the aircraft would be carrying.
Support for F-16 training programme
The F-16 training programme is being backed by a coalition of eleven NATO nations and needs official US approval as the jets are American technology.
On Friday, an American official said the US would approve the transfer of fighter jets to Ukraine as soon as training is complete.
Netherlands and Denmark have taken the lead in preparing a training program on the American jet, but the US is still working with other nations to see who may provide F-16s to the Ukraine.
The US approved on Friday the transfer of F-16 instructional materials from Denmark to Ukraine.
