President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine has already sent its pilots for training on Swedish Gripen aircraft, and therefore expects that the first fighter jets with Ukrainian pilots could appear in Ukraine as early as December-January. The Head of State announced this during a press conference with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, UNN reports.
"Now our pilots are beginning training missions. We are counting on a broader training infrastructure. We need to send the first pilots; for Ukraine, this is always a great challenge. We will do everything in our power to send more pilots. I think that in December-January we will receive the first Gripens with Ukrainian pilots,"
Ukraine confirmed the start of pilot training on Gripen in 202618.04.26, 06:15
As a reminder,
Ukraine has received the opportunity to purchase up to 20 Swedish-made Gripen fighters, and is also expected to receive 16 as bilateral aid from Sweden.