Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that in the war, the key deficit remains not aircraft, but trained pilots, who cannot be quickly replaced due to lengthy training abroad, but Ukraine can use Polish MiG-29 aircraft now. Zelenskyy made this statement during a press conference with Polish President Karol Nawrocki in Warsaw, as reported by UNN.
We would be grateful for this offer that Poland made regarding the supply of MiGs. I want to explain Ukraine's interest: when you have a daily war, every pilot is a great deficit. Training a pilot takes years. The issue is not that we don't have F-16s. Even if they are not new, we don't have them. That is, you take an experienced pilot from the battlefield, from the war, and send him abroad, spending a year, about 10 months, depending on the pilot's experience. So that this pilot returns on an F-16 to fight against Russia. The difference between an F-16 and a MiG is only to avoid losing our pilot, because there is no need to train on MiGs, as our people are already trained.
Details
He added that the issue is not a deficit of aircraft, but a deficit of pilots.
The President emphasized that Ukraine did not pressure Poland to hand over these aircraft.
These planes are not new. We can use them today to protect our sky. Therefore, if this can be resolved, I think it should be resolved.
Recall
Poland continues negotiations with Ukraine regarding the transfer of MiG-29 aircraft.