• Two Ukrainian pilots are presently testing their abilities in flight simulators.
• Joe Biden gave a resounding “no” when asked before if the US would send F-16s to Ukraine.
• He claimed it would cost too much money to train Ukrainian pilots for 18 months to fly F-16s.

According to three sources briefed on the situation, the US is coordinating with Ukrainian pilots stationed in the country to ascertain how long training for F-16 fighter jets would take.

Two Ukrainian pilots are presently testing their abilities in flight simulators at a military base in the US to determine how long it would take them to train to fly different US military aircraft, including F-16s.

The Ukrainian pilots were in Tucson, Arizona, for “a familiarization event,” according to a US military official who was accompanying Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to the Middle East. He described the event as “regular action as part of our military-to-military dialogue with Ukraine.”

The official explained that the familiarization event basically consists of a dialogue between Air Force officials and an examination of how the US Air Force functions.

“This occasion gives us a better opportunity to assist Ukrainian pilots in improving their talents as pilots and to provide them with better guidance in doing so. Although they won’t be flying any platforms at this event, the pilots will spend some of their time in a simulator.

According to the source, there are “no updates to share on F-16s to Ukraine” and no current plans to increase the number of Ukrainian pilots working in the US.

Although there is currently no sign that flight training is taking place, the action shows that the US has not fully ruled out deploying F-16s.

Top Ukrainian officials have intensified their public lobbying effort in recent days in an effort to persuade the US to provide fighter jets, alleging that they are required to defend against Russian missile and drone assaults.

But, US and NATO officials have expressed doubt over the initiative, claiming that the jets wouldn’t be realistic since they require substantial training and that Russia has powerful anti-aircraft systems that could easily shoot them down.

President Joe Biden gave a resounding “no” when asked before if the US would send F-16s to Ukraine.

Early in the conflict, the US also thought that giving Ukraine additional fighter jets would put NATO and Russia at risk of escalating their conflict.

Biden stated that Ukraine “doesn’t need F-16s today” in an interview with NBC in February, despite repeated public requests from Ukrainian leaders and increasing pressure from congressional Republicans.

According to prior news reports, F-16 fighter jets are not viable in this circumstance according to US and European experts.

This Monday, Germany absolutely ruled out sending fighter jets to Ukraine, and UK government officials agreed, saying they didn’t think it would be viable to send aircraft there.

When questioned about sending F-16 fighter jets, the leaders of the Netherlands and Poland also seemed hesitant.

The House Armed Services Committee heard testimony from Under Secretary of Defense for Strategy Colin Kahl on Tuesday. He claimed it would cost too much money to train Ukrainian pilots for 18 months to fly F-16s.

In the hearing, Kahl stated, “It’s really difficult for me to tell any member of Congress or the American people that the best use of that dollar spent right now is on F-16s.

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