At least two Ukrainian pilots are currently in USA and are trained on flight simulators at a military base in Tucson, Arizona. The purpose of these exercises, according to NBC News and CNN, citing sources, is assessing the skills of pilots to understand how long it will take to train Ukrainian Air Force pilots on modern western aircraft, including F-16 fighters.

The Ukrainian pilots are being assessed by the 162nd Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Arizona National Guard, which specializes in training to fly F-16 fighter jets, two U.S. officials said.

Already in March, another 10 Ukrainian pilots are expected to arrive in the United States for this certification.

OUR Ukraine previously urged Western countries to purchase fighter jets, mainly F-16 fighters. To date, no country has delivered fighter jets to Kyiv.

NATO member countries have been discussing the issue of providing fighter jets to Kyiv since the end of January. So far, deliveries of fighter jets to Ukraine have been sanctioned by the authorities of France and the Netherlands. Chancellor of Germany Olaf Soltz blocked the supply of fighter jets to Ukraine, citing the need to avoid further escalation of the conflict. US President Joe Biden also said earlier that he was not considering such a possibility. At the same time, according to the New York Times, the US government did not rule out the transfer of American F-16 fighters to Kyiv through third countries.

At the end of February, US Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland said that Washington was discussing the possibility of providing Ukraine with fourth or fifth generation fighter jets. She added that a decision on possible supplies would be made after assessing the needs of Kyiv.

Source: APE-MPE, NBC News.