United to win: Netherlands plans to transfer six more F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine
Photo: Twitter
The Netherlands will transfer six more F-16 fighters to Ukraine than initially planned. Six aircraft planned for sale will be added to the 18 aircraft.
The government of the Netherlands reported this.
In 2021, the Netherlands concluded agreements with the international company Draken International to sell 12 F-16 aircraft. With the help of these aircraft, Draken was supposed to expand its fleet with fourth-generation aircraft – the company wants to compete for orders and tenders. However, this sale did not occur, after which the Netherlands offered Draken to buy 6 F-16 aircraft in the future. This should have been agreed after the approval of the terms of sale. But in the end, both sides concluded that the sale and delivery of these F-16s would not happen in the short term.
So now, six aircraft will be added to the 18 F-16 fighters being prepared for transfer to Ukraine. The remaining 18 aircraft are intended for the F-16 training center in Romania.
The Minister of Defense of the Netherlands, Kajsa Ollongren, also announced the transfer of additional fighter jets on social network X.
"The Ministry of Defense of the Netherlands is preparing six more F-16 fighter jets for delivery to Ukraine. Thus, the total number is 24 F-16s. Ukraine's superiority in the air is important for countering Russian aggression," the message states.
It should be noted that F-16 fighters have been an essential part of the strike force of the Netherlands Air Force for many years. However, this role has now been taken over by more modern F-35s, so the country has decided to eliminate its F-16s.
For reference:
On August 20, an agreement was reached between the Netherlands and Denmark on transferring F-16 aircraft to Ukraine after training Ukrainian pilots.
In particular, Ukraine will receive 42 American F-16 fighter jets from the Netherlands and 19 aircraft from Denmark. On September 15, Belgium joined the training of Ukrainian pilots on the F-16.
In addition, in 2024, the Netherlands plans to hand over the first batch of F-16s to Ukraine.
At the end of September, the Air Force released a video about how pilots adapt to the F-16 in Ukraine. They master the control of American F-16 fighter jets with the help of a flight simulator.
In November, the first F-16s for training pilots from Ukraine, which the Netherlands previously sent, arrived at the training center in Romania.
According to the spokesman of the Air Force Command, Yuriy Ihnat, the F-16s would help our soldiers resist attacks by Russian-guided aerial bombs.
According to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine can achieve its goal of regaining control over the airspace, specifically through F–16 fighters, as long as one condition is met.
