According to Kajsa Ollongren, the head of the Ministry of Defence of the Netherlands, Ukraine can receive the first F-16 fighter jets from Denmark this summer.
Points of attention
- The first F-16s will be delivered to Ukraine this summer, and the Air Force of the Armed Forces will gradually strengthen.
- The possibility of arming the F-16 with ATACMS missiles opens up new opportunities for Ukrainian aviation in the fight against Russian aggression.
- Analysis by analysts shows that integrating ATACMS missiles under F-16 fighters is real but requires some modifications and crew training.
- Increasing the combat capabilities of Ukrainian aviation can contribute to strengthening the country's defence capabilities and air superiority.
- Introducing JTACMS under F-16 fighter jets demonstrates preparedness and perspective in using high-precision air-missile weapons.
What is known about the timing of Ukraine's receipt of the first F-16s from Western partners
I expect that from the summer of this year the first F-16 will be delivered to Ukraine, and from then on, the supply of these combat aircraft will be put "on stream". There will be more and more planes, and this will strengthen your Air Force, - said Dutch MoD chief.
According to her, Denmark will first hand over the F-16 to Ukraine and then, a little later, the Netherlands.
Ollongren noted that Western fighters will not help Ukraine reverse the course of the criminal war unleashed by Russia but will significantly strengthen the capabilities of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
These fighters will arrive gradually. Combat use will show their effectiveness. It will significantly strengthen the Air Force and at some point it can lead to your air superiority. But that can't happen as soon as you get the first F-16s. So, if someone expects an immediate effect, then I advise you to be more realistic, - emphasised Dutch MoD chief.
Is it possible to arm the F-16 for Ukraine with ATACMS missiles
As analysts of the Defense Express portal point out, the ability to integrate American ATACMS long-range missiles under F-16 fighters looks quite natural.
It will enable Ukrainian aviation to attack the targets of the criminal army of the Russian Federation at distances of more than 300 km.
At the same time, analysts assume that the aviation version of ATACMS may be called JTACMS (Joint Tactical Missile System) since the first missile was planned to be used both from the ground and in the air.
In 1984, the US Air Force withdrew from the project, and two years later Ling-Temco-Vought won the competition with its version of the MGM-140. That is, at the project stage, ATACMS was planned for air launch. At most, its carrier was also supposed to be an F-16 in the amount of two units. But all that remains of this project is a plastic model in extremely poor condition, the publication says.
According to analysts, there are problems with integrating ATACMS for use on F-16 fighters. Changes to the missile's navigation algorithms—it will no longer launch with zero altitude and speed parameters—must also be made, as well as teaching the aircraft to interact with this weapon.
JTACMS demonstrates that with a high degree of probability all calculations and methods were already worked out in the 1980s, - emphasise the authors of the material.
