For more than three weeks, Ukrainian F-16s defended the skies without American missiles, - Reuters
Ukrainian F-16 fighter jets did not have enough missiles to shoot down Russian drones and missiles for more than three weeks after supplies from Kyiv's partners ran out.
This was reported by Reuters, according to Censor.NET.
What is known?
According to the publication, there was an acute shortage of rockets from late November to mid-December.
The interlocutors said that Ukraine had only a few American AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles for all its F-16s.
This shortage of ammunition meant that Ukrainian pilots were forced to use their onboard cannons to destroy drones and mainly carried out daytime combat sorties.
At night, such missions were much more dangerous.
The pilots also attempted to reuse rockets that had failed during launches after servicing them.
"In some cases, they succeeded," writes Reuters.
When did the situation improve?
The deficit was covered in December, when Ukraine received AIM-9 air-to-air missiles from its partners shortly before the large-scale Russian attack.
