Russian propagandists are fantasizing that their military is allegedly already shooting down F-16 fighters in Ukraine. However, Ukraine has not even received them yet. This was announced by the spokesman of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Yuriy Ihnat during a telethon on Monday, a correspondent of UNN reports.
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When the TV presenter ironically asked why the Russians were "reducing" our losses of F-16s, why they were reporting in their publics that they had shot down only four planes, why not 20, Ihnat answered: "I think that at the end of the day there will be more (reports of "downed" F-16s - ed.) and by the end of the year they will have completed "this difficult year" with at least two squadrons."
He noted that there are already memes about the F-16.
"Their reports are encouraging. Five Ukrainian aircraft are destroyed every day in their general staff reports. There are already memes about F-16s, that they have already found them in Ukraine. Every day I get questions like this from my colleagues: well, it's an off-record, tell me, are they there (in Ukraine - ed.)? People want to believe that they are in Ukraine. Well, the enemy believed, and the enemy is "destroying" them," Ihnat said.
When asked whether the pilots and maintenance personnel are already one hundred percent ready, Ihnat replied: "Let's not exaggerate, as the enemy does, about readiness. We are ready, and our Western partners have confirmed this. They have announced that they are ready, that they are in the process."
Ihnat reminded us that in addition to pilots, we need infrastructure and engineers.
"Our partners have declared that they are ready to transfer it," he said.
AddendumAddendum
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reports that the Dutch government has decided to start preparing the first 18 F-16 aircraft for delivery to Ukraine.
Yuriy Ihnat notedthat Western partners are to provide Ukraine with a number of F-16 aircraft. However, they will need to be modernized before being used.