Ukraine needs more than just F-16 fighters to gain an advantage in the skies. Aircraft missiles and powerful radars are also needed.
This was reported by RBC-Ukraine with reference to the speaker of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Yuriy Ignat on the air of the telethon.
“Our aviation should have radars and powerful missiles. We should not give in to the Su-35. This way we can gain advantage in the air,” Ignat said.
He explained that there are different types of missiles for aviation, as well as their modifications to hit targets at different distances. As an example, he named the AIM-120 AMRAAM aircraft guided missile, which is the main one in the arsenal of NATO countries. As Ignat noted, these are the missiles that are needed for the NASAMS anti-aircraft complex, transferred to Ukraine by its partners.
“Aircraft weapons are a very expensive thing. A rocket for NASAMS costs half a million dollars... There are AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles of modifications that can hit targets up to 180 km. This is enough to threaten the Russian Su-35,” the speaker emphasized.
Ukraine will receive F-16
It is worth noting that previously a number of European countries, within the framework of the aviation coalition, agreed to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 multirole fighters. The United States also confirmed that in October, Ukrainian Armed Forces pilots will begin training on aircraft at the National Guard base in Arizona.
In addition, last week, after the visit of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky to Europe, it became known about agreements on the transfer of F-16s. The Netherlands, Denmark and Norway confirmed their readiness to provide aircraft. We are talking about at least 61 aircraft.
