Ten Ukrainian servicemen underwent F-16 fighter maintenance training in the Netherlands.
This was reported to the Ministry of Defense of the Netherlands.
Ukrainians were taught to service all components important for a fighter pilot, including helmets, oxygen systems and parachutes on board.
The training also included assembling and testing a survival kit that would allow a pilot to stay alive for several days after a crash landing. The kit includes, in particular, food and medicine.
The training program was compiled by the Flight Safety Equipment Cluster.
“F-16 pilots actually put their lives in the hands of the soldiers who maintain the aircraft. At the moment when they take off, they know that they can rely on the knowledge and skills of these people," said the cluster employee.
In total, the Netherlands agreed to provide Ukraine with at least 24 F-16 fighter jets. Denmark, Norway and Belgium will also transfer such planes.
- Ukrainian military pilots and technicians are already undergoing training in the USA, Britain, France, Denmark and Romania. It is expected that Ukraine will have the first six F-16 fighters and 12 trained pilots already in the summer of 2024.