Photo: Lithuanian Ministry of National Defense
The Politico: F-16s won’t be a ‘magic weapon’ for Ukraine, Milley warns
Top leaders also announce that Denmark and the Netherlands are leading an international effort to train Ukrainian pilots.
The military’s top general cautioned Thursday that F-16s won’t act as a “magic weapon” for Ukraine, but the U.S. is fully behind a group of NATO allies taking the lead on training and potentially transferring the jets to Kyiv.
“The Russians have 1,000 fourth-generation fighters,” Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Mark Milley told reporters at the Pentagon following a virtual meeting of the multinational Ukraine Defense Contact Group. “If you’re gonna contest Russia in the air, you’re gonna need a substantial amount of fourth and fifth generation fighters, so if you look at the cost curve and do the analysis, the smartest thing to have done is exactly what we did do, which is provide a significant amount of integrated air defenses to cover the battlespace and deny the Russians the airspace.”
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Update #1: ‘No Magic Weapons’: Milley Sets Expectations On F-16s (Defense One)
Update #2: WATCH: Pentagon officials say allies will train Ukrainians on F-16s, but warns jets aren’t ‘magic weapons’ (AP)
WNU Editor: Another senior military leader pouring cold water on F-16 expectations in the Ukraine war.