F-16 is most likely candidate for Ukraine, - Ihnat
Ukraine needs its aviation equipment not to be inferior to Russian aircraft.
Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat said this during the telethon, Censor.NET reports.
"Now there is a lot of talk about different types of aircraft. ... But it is necessary to understand that we need to gain superiority in the air and that our aviation equipment should at least not be inferior to Russian aircraft. Now there is a very noticeable difference in both quantity and technology (with by the Russians. - Ed.) The enemy has Su-30 and Su-35 aircraft, which have been seriously modernized.
In a one-on-one aerial confrontation, Soviet equipment, such as we have in armaments, has no chance at all. It was at the beginning of the war that the pilots created miracles simply by going head-on into the attack, emerging from various situations, and studying the topography of the area. They drove the enemy under the influence of our air defense," he explained.
"What is important to us is a real aviation platform, not the type of aircraft. It can be different types of aircraft, but they must be generation 4+. They must have the entire range of weapons used by NATO countries - air-to-air, air-to-surface missiles", cruise missiles, and anti-ship weapons. Guided aerial bombs, etc. There is a very wide spectrum. Have powerful radars. These are the main characteristics that modern Western fighter jets have to meet." - Ihnat added.
According to an Air Force spokesman, the F-16 is the most deployed aircraft in the world today.
"Approximately 4,500 of these aircraft have been manufactured. It is in service with 25 countries and is the most likely candidate for Ukraine," he said.
