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Young pilots will be trained for Ukrainian F-16s instead of experienced ones
The training program will be refocused: Ukraine will field its first full F-16 squadron next summer, but young pilots will be more receptive to NATO-standard training conducted in English.
The United States will begin training young pilots to fly Ukrainian F-16 fighters instead of experienced fighters. This step could delay the emergence of full-fledged squadrons with Western aircraft for the Ukrainian army by several months, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported, citing sources among American officials.
Due to the lack of experienced pilots who speak English at a sufficient level for this, they decided to train young pilots. The publication's interlocutors also expect that it will be easier to train young cadets according to Western standards.
Some of the young cadets have already started training. Unlike their more experienced colleagues, they will have to undergo a year of basic flight training, learning to fly in England and France.
A full F-16 squadron would consist of 20 aircraft and 40 pilots, and WSJ sources familiar with the program estimated that Ukraine would not have time to train that many specialists until the spring or summer of 2025.
U.S. Air Force pilots undergo training for about two years, and then mostly continue training within their unit before being cleared for real missions. Ukrainian pilots, on the other hand, are immediately sent out on combat missions after training, without the necessary experience to optimally fly modern aircraft, the WSJ notes. The United States has shortened the training process for experienced Ukrainian pilots to six to nine months, depending on their knowledge, and focused the course on the specific challenges they would face in a conflict with Russia.
U.S. officials say Ukrainian pilots lack English, many have difficulty reading the F-16 manual in English, and some have failed the program. Instructors also found that experienced Ukrainian pilots, among the first groups to arrive for training, resisted American training methods. Friction often erupts between NATO instructors, who have a hard-nosed approach to training, and Ukrainians with combat experience, the people told the WSJ.
The first crash of an F-16 fighter jet delivered from the West occurred in late August, just weeks after it arrived in Ukraine. The WSJ’s sources explained what happened as they rushed to train pilots and begin real combat missions.
Russia is demanding an end to military aid to Ukraine, noting that it will not help Ukrainian troops turn the tide of hostilities. The Kremlin has linked the Ukrainian military's acquisition of F-16s to the escalation of the conflict and increased Western intervention.