Retired US Pilots Could Fly Ukraine's F-16s, Lindsey Graham Suggests

Retired U.S. pilots could fly Ukraine's Western-donated F-16 fighter jets Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, is reported to have suggested during his trip to Kyiv this week.

Graham said retired pilots from member states of the NATO military alliance—of which the U.S. is part—could be hired by Ukraine to fly the aircraft, although he didn't specifically mention U.S. pilots.

"Retired F-16 pilots who want to fight for freedom may be hired by Ukraine. The Ukrainians will look among NATO countries for ready pilots who have retired to help them until Ukraine trains its pilots," the senator said after speaking with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, media outlets including Russian newspapers Izvestia and Vedomosti, reported.

"This way, Kyiv will be able to use the F-16s transferred from allies earlier, while its pilots are undergoing training," he said, adding that he would raise the issue with U.S. President Joe Biden.

Newsweek has contacted NATO for comment by email.

Zelensky had long called on his Western allies to provide his military with the advanced fighter jets to assist in the war against Russia, now in its third year. Training to fly the aircraft must be conducted outside Ukraine.

In July, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Ukraine's allies in NATO had started transferring the U.S.-manufactured jets to Ukraine. He said they would be "flying in the skies of Ukraine this summer to make sure that Ukraine can continue to effectively defend itself against the Russian aggression."

F-16s were spotted earlier this month over the front line in Ukraine's southern Kherson region, according to Pavlo Filipchuk, a Kremlin-installed official, who said they were flying above the Ukrainian settlement of Kakhovka "only to sow panic."

Zelensky had confirmed days earlier that the aircraft had arrived in Ukraine and were already being used by Kyiv's air force.

"I am proud of all our guys who have mastered these aircraft and have already started using them for our country," the Ukrainian president said. "F-16s are already in Ukrainian skies, and there will be more."

Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands and Belgium had pledged to send more than 60 F-16s to Ukraine this summer but Bloomberg reported on July 12, citing unnamed sources, that this year Kyiv may get far fewer of the jets than it had hoped—six this summer and up to 20 by the end of 2024.

"I cannot say now how many of these aircraft there will be," Zelensky told reporters. "They will certainly strengthen us, but will there be enough of these aircraft to fight on par with the Russian air fleet? I believe that they will not be enough. Do we expect more? Yes."

In July, Al-Jazeera reported that Greece was set to decommission 32 of its F-16 Block-30 fighter jets and sell them to the U.S., where they could be upgraded and transferred to Ukraine.

The publication reported, citing unnamed sources, that Greece was moving to decommission its older fighter jets as it modernizes 82 F-16s to Block-70 status and purchases 24 fourth-generation Dassault Rafale fighters from France.

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