The Biden administration has refused to send technical personnel to Ukraine to maintain F-16 fighter jets for security reasons, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing US officials.
The Biden administration has rejected a military proposal to send US contractors to Ukraine to maintain Western military equipment, including F-16 fighter jets, due to security concerns, the paper writes.
The US National Security Council has considered a proposal to send civilian contractors to Ukraine, “but the intelligence community and others consider it too risky at this time” because Russia could attack them. Dozens of support personnel are needed to maintain an F-16 aircraft.
“Without civilian contractors to maintain the aircraft, such as repairs and replacement of parts, Ukraine will have a hard time keeping Western-provided aircraft operational. But the United States has been reluctant to send personnel to Ukraine for security reasons. A small contingent of diplomats, military personnel and other government contractors is assigned to the U.S. Embassy in kyiv.” – says the article cited by the Strana publication.
It should be noted that in the meantime, the Netherlands intends to pay for a private contract with a civilian company for the maintenance of the F-16.
as it was transmitted EADailyAn American F-16 jet transferred to Ukraine for various reasons was shot down by a Patriot air defense system, The New York Times reported, citing a Western official briefed on the investigation.
“A Western official who has been briefed on the preliminary investigation into the crash said there are ‘indications’ that friendly fire from a Patriot missile battery may have brought down the plane, although technical faults and pilot error have not yet been ruled out,” the article said.
