Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Ukraine receives first F-16 fighter jets to bolster defenses against Russia, a US official tells AP

Ukraine has received the first F-16 fighter jets that it has sought for months to fight back against an onslaught of Russian missile strikes, a U.S. official confirmed to the Associated Press

Tara Copp
Wednesday 31 July 2024 12:36 EDT
US Ukraine Fighter Jets
US Ukraine Fighter Jets (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Ukraine has received the first F-16 fighter jets that it has sought for months to fight back against an onslaught of Russian missile strikes, a U.S. official confirmed to the Associated Press.

Ukraine has been pushing its Western allies for F-16s for Ukraine for months, saying they were critically needed to fight back against the onslaught of missiles Russia has fired against it. The F-16 is specialized in suppressing enemy air defenses.

The U.S. has also been training Ukrainian pilots on how to fly the jets and has already graduated the first group of pilots on its operation.

It’s not clear how many jets were provided in the first tranche or which nations provided them. The Ukrainian government has not confirmed receipt of the jets.

The arrival of the jets was first reported by Bloomberg.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in