Ukrainian Pilots Will Begin Training On Swedish JAS 39 Gripen Fighters

Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson said that Ukrainian fighter pilots should be allowed to practice flying Swedish JAS 39 Gripen fighters. This was reported by the Swedish publication tv4 on Thursday, May 25.

According to Jonson, Ukrainian pilots will be able to practice on simulators and test the JAS 39 Gripen as orientation training, the publication writes. However, today it is unlikely that these fighters will be used against the Russian occupiers, as the Minister of Defense emphasized that the six divisions that Sweden has should remain in the country.

"The aircraft that Sweden has are needed for our own national defense, currently lending some aircraft to Ukraine is irrelevant. But this gives Ukraine a basis for making future decisions regarding the equipment of its defense. They are investing in strengthening their capabilities in the long term," Jonson said.

AS 39 Gripen are Swedish fighters that are cheaper than competitors and are considered easy to train, the publication notes. According to Jonson, Sweden will ignore possible criticism from the aggressor state of Russia: "We have taken Ukraine's position in this war and consider it a threat to Sweden if Russia wins this war," the Defense Minister emphasized.

As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, on May 19, U.S. President Joe Biden announced that the U.S. would allow its allies to provide Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets.

On May 18, the American edition of Yahoo News, referring to the materials of the internal assessment of the U.S. Air Force, reported that it would take only four months to train Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16 fighters.

Britain will also start training Ukrainian pilots in the summer and is working to provide F-16 fighter jets for Ukraine.