The U.S. will lead a new coalition to develop Ukraine’s air force by training F-16 fighter pilots, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said Wednesday while attending a NATO defense ministers summit in Brussels.
Denmark and the Netherlands will also join the Americans in training F-16 pilots and maintainers, Austin said. The two countries, along with Norway, have pledged to donate F-16s to Ukraine, which has long sought access to the aircraft following Russia’s invasion in 2022.
“By leading this capability coalition, the United States will coordinate closely with Ukraine and other partners with the focus on developing Ukraine’s F-16 fighter aircraft capabilities,” Austin said after attending the 16th meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group.
A small group of Ukraine’s fighter pilots are scheduled to begin flight training on the fighter jets in Arizona. Ukrainian pilots are also familiarizing themselves with flying F-16s by using desktop virtual reality flight simulators.
