Chief of Staff of the US Air Force, Charles Brown, said that discussions are ongoing in the US and allied armies about the possibility of training the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Reuters writes about it.
Earlier in Congress, it was proposed to allocate $100 million for the training of Ukrainian pilots and the maintenance of US combat aircraft. It was, in particular, about the F-15 and F-16 fighters.
In a conversation with journalists, Brown did not comment on this bill. He also declined to talk about a timeline or what types of Western aircraft would be best for Ukraine. But he emphasized that the future training of Ukrainian pilots is a complex issue that needs to take into account the state of war and Kyivʼs ability to withdraw pilots from combat for long-term training.
When asked how long it might take a Ukrainian pilot to learn to fly American fighter jets, the US Air Force Chief of Staff said that an American pilot learns to fly a new type of aircraft for about two to four months. He believes that the transition from the Soviet system will be "a little more difficult" for Ukrainians.
Brown noted that Ukraine can turn to NATO allies who have experience in transitioning from Soviet-era aviation to Western technologies.
"Iʼm quite sure that there are some of our NATO partners who have done this, have experience that can be useful to the Ukrainians and help to understand how best to make this transition," Brown explained.