The Netherlands delivered the first five F-16 fighter jets to Fetesti Air Base in Romania, where Ukrainian pilots will train with other pilots from NATO countries. The training is expected to take five to nine months, according to Pentagon spokesperson Brigadier General Pat Ryder. The aircraft provided for the training will remain the property of the Royal Netherlands Air Force.
Entering service with the U.S. Air Force in 1978 during the Cold War, the F-16 is the primary fighter aircraft for many NATO countries. With the Netherlands replacing their aging F-16 fleet with F-35 jets, they have committed to providing their surplus F-16s to Ukraine. The Ukrainian military’s request for AMRAAMs (advanced medium-range air-to-air missiles) to use with the F-16s provided by NATO countries was approved by the Pentagon despite the risk of the highly sensitive technology in those weapons systems being captured by Russian forces in Ukraine.
