US Plans to Support F-15 and F-16 Training for Ukraine... Will Combat Aircraft Also Be Provided?

$100 Million Allocated in US Defense Budget Bill
Possibility of Direct Fighter Jet Provision Emerges

File photo. Photo by Asia Economy DB

[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] The next U.S. defense budget includes funding for fighter pilot training for the Ukrainian Air Force. This has led to speculation that fighter jets may be provided to Ukraine from the U.S. or Poland.

The British daily The Telegraph reported on the 16th (local time) that the upcoming U.S. defense budget includes funding to provide F-15 and F-16 fighter pilot training to the Ukrainian Air Force.

According to The Telegraph, the budget was included in the Fiscal Year 2023 (October 1, 2022 ? September 30, 2023) National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on the 14th. The NDAA, enacted annually, outlines U.S. national security issues and defense policies and sets the corresponding budget scale.

The FY2023 NDAA includes a budget of $100 million (approximately 132.5 billion KRW) to support the replacement of equipment for the Ukrainian Air Force, which mainly operates Soviet-era fighter jets such as the MiG-29 and Sukhoi. The bill will be finalized after passing the Senate in September. It is reported that basic training for F-15 and F-16 pilots requires at least three months.

Regarding this, Andriy Yermak, Chief of Staff to the Ukrainian President, said, "Ukrainian pilots will learn to fly F-15 and F-16 jets in the U.S.," adding, "The U.S. FY2023 defense budget plan includes allocating $100 million for this purpose." The Telegraph analyzed that considering this, there is a possibility that Ukraine may receive U.S.-made fighter jets from the U.S. or Poland.

Since Russia's invasion on February 24, Ukraine has requested fighter jet support from Western countries, citing the difficulty of facing Russia equipped with the latest weapons using old fighter jets made in the 1970s and 1980s. However, the U.S. and others have not provided fighter jets, considered "offensive weapons," due to concerns about escalation. Poland also rejected a plan in March to directly supply its MiG-29s to Ukraine, instead proposing to send the jets to a U.S. military base in Germany from where they would fly to Ukraine.

However, this plan was also not realized as the U.S. refused, fearing that Ukrainian forces might use Western-supplied weapons to attack Russian territory. In fact, while the U.S. has supplied medium-range weapons such as the M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) to Ukraine, it has not provided long-range rockets capable of targeting locations beyond 300 km.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.