No official reason was given, but there is a connection with the loss of a Western F-16 fighter jet and its pilot. There was talk of a crash. However, Ukrainian MPs and activists did not rule out the possibility that the plane was accidentally shot down by the plane’s own air defenses.
“We must become stronger”
Zelensky mentioned the personnel decision, which had previously been announced by decree, in his evening video address, but left the reasons for it open. However, he stressed that the command structures must be strengthened and the forces protected. “I am eternally grateful to all our military pilots,” said the president. They are really achieving results for Ukraine. “This also applies to the command level. We must become stronger. And protect our people.” The F-16 pilot died in the crash on Monday. He was deployed to fend off the major Russian attack. The US defense apparatus said that Russian fire was apparently not the cause of the crash.
It has not yet been determined whether it was pilot error or technical failure, US sources said. The Ukrainian military did not comment on the cause. However, it said that the fighter jet crashed when it approached a Russian target. US experts would support Ukraine in investigating the incident, the former Air Force Chief Oleshchuk said on Monday. Oleshchuk’s role will now be temporarily taken over by Lieutenant General Anatoly Kryvonoshka, the General Staff announced on Friday.
Loss should be clarified
This is the first time that Ukraine has announced the loss of one of the previously long-awaited and recently commissioned US-made fighter jets. According to an earlier report by the Times of London, the country had six of them.
On Thursday, the General Staff confirmed that one of the few F-16 aircraft had been lost in action against a massive Russian air attack on Monday. “I have decided to dismiss the commander of the Ukrainian Air Force,” Zelensky said in his evening video address on Friday.
On Friday, Oleshchuk criticized a member of parliament on Telegram who questioned the official version of the crash. She was promoting Russian propaganda, he wrote, and threatened to take her to court. The loss of the plane is being investigated, also in cooperation with the manufacturer, the USA. The lieutenant general had led the Ukrainian Air Force since 2021. No information has yet been given about his successor.
Severe setback
Several F-16 fighter jets were delivered to Kiev by the Western allies just a few weeks ago. The incident is a serious setback for Ukraine. The government in Kiev had to make do with a fleet of outdated Soviet-era MIG-29 and Sukhoi fighter jets to fend off massive Russian air attacks and had long demanded that the West deliver state-of-the-art F-16 fighter jets more quickly.
