France supplies Mirage-Kampfjets, the Netherlands more F-16 to Ukraine

France supplies Mirage-Kampfjets, the Netherlands more F-16 to Ukraine

The Ukrainian Air Force received an important upswing on Thursday in its fight against Russia by arriving from Mirage 2000-5 fighter aircraft from France and F-16 jets from the Netherlands.

arrival of the Mirage-Jets

The French Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu confirmed the transfer of the Mirage jets in a contribution to X (formerly Twitter) and added that the aircraft were flown by Ukrainian pilots who have been trained in France for months. President Emmanuel Macron had already promised the Mirage jets of Ukraine last summer.

increase in air safety

"Ukrainian airspace becomes safer!" Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said in a Facebook post. The arrival of the "first French Mirage 2000 fighter planes and F-16 from the Kingdom of the Netherlands" was celebrated by Umerov as a milestone: "These modern fighter planes have already arrived in Ukraine and will soon be used in combat missions to strengthen our defense and improve our ability to react effectively to the Russian aggression."

thanks to France

Ukrainian President Wolodymyr Selenskyj thanked Macron on Thursday for "his leadership and support". He said: "The President of France holds his word and we appreciate that."

increase in combat skills

The new fighter planes are intended to improve the ability of the Ukrainian armed forces, offer air protection for troops, attack soil destinations, fight enemy aircraft and intercept them. The latter function could be crucial because Russia has tightened its rocket attacks to Ukrainian cities and often fires dozens of rockets on one night, which heavily stresses the Ukrainian air defense systems.

Current developments

Last weekend a Russian Attack on a residential building in the central part of Ukraine, According to the emergency services that at least 14 people were killed. In January, the Ukrainian Air Force reported in a Facebook post that one of her F-16 pilots had shot down six Russian rockets in one night in December

The role of the Mirage jets

The military air trip analyst Peter Layton from the Griffith Asia Institute said that the Mirage jets would be best suited for air defense, which could result in the F-16 for other missions. According to Layton, Mirages can get up faster than F-16. "I would keep the (Mirages) in stand-by mode and be able to start within a few minutes to intercept incoming marching missiles (primary goals) and Shahed drones (secondary goals)."

support of the naval actions

In addition, Mirages could also be used to fire long -range missiles such as the Scalp, also known as Storm Shadow, to goals deeply in Russia. This was explained by Layton, who was once an officer of the Royal Australian Air Force. The CNN military analyst Cedric Leighton found that the Mirages of the Ukraine could offer another platform to attack the Black Sea fleet of Russia, as the Jets can transport French exocet-anti ships.

The location of the Ukrainian Air Force

Ukraine needs any help that she can get in her almost three -year war, triggered by the invasion of Russia in 2022. Despite the promise of US President Donald Trump to quickly achieve an armistice, there is no relaxation in the fight. The Ukrainian armed forces continue to be pushed back on the Eastern Fronts , Confronted with superior Russian manpower and resources.

The announcements on Thursday do not specify how many fighter planes were transferred to Ukraine by the two NATO allies, but the country has so far only had a few western military aircraft in its fleet. Last summer, the Ukraine received its first f-16 at that time, Denmark and the United States-where the F-16S are built-thanked for the planes without naming the exact number of jet delivered. According to reports, two F-16 have now been lost. A list of Flight Global's fighter fleets worldwide shows two F-16 in the Ukrainian fleet at the beginning of this year, with 58 others in order.

perspectives for the future

France had 26 active Mirage 2000-5 jets in his Air Force, according to Flight Global. These aircraft are the oldest jets in the French fleet and are to be replaced by Rafale jets in the coming years. It is not known how many are transferred to Ukraine. Layton calls current estimates that provide a total of 95 f-16 and about two dozen Mirages for Ukraine. "No aircraft will be available to Ukraine in sufficient numbers to provide the aerial combat skills that Ukraine needs against Russia in this phase of its war," he added. "Ideally, the Ukrainian Air Force should have around 200 to 220 fighter jets."