F‑16s arrive in Ukraine: boosting Kyiv's air defence against Russia

The first American F-16 fighter jets have already arrived in Ukraine. Although the Russians had ample time to prepare for this transfer, how do Moscow's best machines fare in direct confrontation with the F-16? Ukrainian military expert Oleksandr Kovalenko has assessed this.

The first F-16 aircraft were delivered to the soldiers, and official photos of the long-awaited machines by the defenders appeared online. Although their number is still not sufficient to fully dominate Russia in the air, the presence of American equipment in Ukraine offers greater hope for changing the situation on the front in favour of Kyiv.

But does the Russian Federation have weapons to respond to Ukraine? Analyst Oleksandr Kovalenko believes so. The expert points out that F-16 fighter jets will be comparable to Russian MiG-31BM jets under actual combat conditions.

– Ukrainian F-16s will practically be on par with the most dangerous Russian MiG-31BM because their radar range practically equals them due to accompanying factors. In confrontation with Su-27/30/34/35 and MiG-29/39, the Ukrainian F-16 will have an advantage – says Kovalenko, quoted by the Ukrainian agency Unian.

The Ukrainian emphasizes that the Russian armed forces have R-37 missiles with a declared range of 200 to 300 kilometres, which managed to shoot down a Ukrainian MiG-29 from a distance of 213 kilometres. While this does not mean the Russians will quickly shoot down the F-16 with the mentioned missile, it shows that Moscow has ways to respond to the new threat in the air.

However, it's significant that during the mentioned 213-kilometre shootdown, the MiG-31BM collaborated with an A-50 radar aircraft, which enabled the missile to be guided at such a long distance. The problem is that after the Ukrainians destroyed several of these machines, the Russians keep the A-50 far from the front. Nevertheless, according to the expert, the mentioned MiG-31BM is considered to be the aircraft that, under actual conditions, can respond to an attack from the F-16.

Let us recall that official photos and recordings showing the handover of F-16s to Ukraine indicate that American machines are armed with short-range AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles and medium-range AIM-120 AMRAAMs. Additionally, extra fuel tanks are placed under their wings to achieve a more excellent range for conducting missions.

An unusual yet very modern addition to the Ukrainian equipment is the ECIPS/CJS electronic warfare pod. This tool's role is to increase crew survivability during flights. The F-16's very good manoeuvrability, determined by its low empty weight of 8,000 kilograms and maximum speed reaching approximately 2,500 kilometres per hour, remains significant in this context.