Sharjah 24 – AFP: Ukraine said Thursday that one of its F-16 fighter jets made by the United States crashed while repelling a Russian air strike, killing the pilot onboard.
The announcement marks the first reported destruction of an F-16 in Ukraine, just weeks after Kyiv began taking delivery of the supersonic aircraft.
"F-16 fighters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were used to repel a missile attack on the territory of Ukraine by the Russian Federation, along with units of anti-aircraft missile troops," the Ukrainian army said.
"During the approach to the next target, communication with one of the planes was lost. As it turned out later, the aircraft crashed, killing the pilot," it added.
The announcements come as a blow to Ukraine, which had long relied on a fleet of ageing Soviet-era MIG-29 and Sukhoi jets and had asked for the F-16s to defend against intense Russian aerial bombardment.
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