Oleksii Reznikov, head of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, believes that Ukrainian pilots may need only four months to master modern F-16 fighters. This is much less than what is prescribed by standard training programs and less than the partners expect. He said this in an interview with the broadcaster Current Time.
At the same time, the minister assumed that these aircraft will appear in Ukraine no earlier than the new year. He reminded that Ukrainian pilots underwent training in the USA on flight simulators and according to their results, it is believed that up to six months will be enough.
"I'm optimistic that our experienced pilots, with their desire, will most likely fly faster. I mean not just fly, but freely: with a maneuver, at night, in a pair. I think that in four months it is realistic," Reznikov said.
The head of the Ministry of Defense reminded that the soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine mastered the Patriot air defense system in ten weeks, not ten months, as expected, and the CAESAR self-propelled guns in three weeks instead of three months.
Answering a question about the terms when F-16s will already be in service with the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the minister said that first of all we need to wait for the training program. There will be "all stages understood". After that, you can roughly tell how many months it will take.
When asked about the fact that Ukraine will receive and put into service the F-16 at least from the new year, the minister replied: "Not earlier."
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