How F-35 Jets Are Pushing Ukraine's Case for F-16s

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Global air forces transitioning to Lockheed Martin's prized F-35 fifth-generation jets are freeing up F-16s for countries like Ukraine, the former head of the defense giant's F-35 program told Newsweek.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 drove many nations to turn to the F-35 in a rapidly-changing security environment, former Lockheed Martin F-35 general manager, Tom Burbage, told Newsweek.

Some of these countries had "been on the fence" about procuring F-35s before early 2022, added Burbage, who is co-author of F-35: The Inside Story of the Lightning II. But with Finland having hopped onto the F-35 program, joining other nations bordering the Arctic such as Canada and Norway, another group of "natural alliances" is coalescing in the Pacific, he said.

 

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U.S. Now Pushing To Deliver F-16s “As Fast As Possible”

 

It appears that Ukraine is getting closer to obtaining F-16 Vipers it has long requested.

 

National security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Friday the U.S. is “moving rapidly” to get F-16s to Ukraine.

“We are going to push as fast as possible,” Sullivan said during remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Aspen, Colo, according to Politico.

 

“Now look, the F-16s will get there probably towards the end of the year,” John Kirby, National Security Council spokesman, told Fox News on Thursday. “But it’s not our assessment that the F-16s alone would be enough to turn the tide here.”

 

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