Ukrainian F-16 fighter jets scored their first aerial victories, shooting down Russian cruise missiles fired at Ukraine during Monday's massive attack, Forbes reported, citing Ukrainian officials.
Kiev recently received the first Western fighter jets after a long wait. For the first time, Ukrainian F-16s have reportedly carried out successful air strikes, and this is just the beginning. Not surprisingly, the Ukrainian Air Force currently uses these aircraft to intercept missiles in the air.
Since Ukraine has received a limited number of fighters, it cannot risk losing them in combat missions near the front to attack ground targets, because these missions are of higher risk. Military observers say that since arriving in Ukraine 3 weeks ago, the F-16s have been seen flying armed with air-to-air rather than air-to-surface missiles, which explains why they are being used for air defense.
At the beginning of this week, Russia carried out its most massive attack on Ukraine since the first day of the invasion (February 24, 2022). President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Russia used more than 100 missiles of various types and about 100 Shahed drones. “And like most previous Russian strikes, this one was just as malicious and targeted against important civilian infrastructure," he says. It is believed that some of the cruise missiles fired at Ukraine's energy infrastructure were intercepted in the air by the F-16.
Ukraine will use the fighters in question for aerial combat against Russian fighters only when it gains more experience, certain missiles and more F-16s. Currently, Ukrainian F-16s will function as air defense.
With this background, The Wall Street Journal reported that Russia has hidden 90% of its fighter jets to protect them from the highly effective US ATACMS systems. Moscow has quickly adapted from its mistakes on the front and, according to intelligence, has already moved 90 percent of its combat aircraft out of range of the missiles that Ukraine has. The US has not yet given Kiev permission to attack military targets deep inside Russian territory for fear of escalation.
Russia's massive aerial bombardment on Monday comes three weeks after Ukraine's lightning-quick invasion of Russia's Kursk region. Meanwhile, Russia has stepped up its offensive in eastern Ukraine, where it is closing in on the important logistics hub of Pokrovsk. The Wall Street Journal confirms that in Russia's air attack on Ukraine on Monday, F-16 fighters shot down Russian missiles and drones.