Feared US F-16 fighter pilot ready to fight for UkraineFeared US F-16 fighter pilot ready to fight for Ukraine

This is how the F-16 can help Kiev win the war

Dan “Two Dogs” Hampton has successfully flown fighters in 151 combat missions, some of them in the Gulf War, the Kosovo War, and the Iraq War. Now, he is offering to fight for Ukraine if necessary, according to a recent interview with Voice of America.

“I will go myself”

“I will go myself, you can count on me,” said the retired lieutenant colonel, as he argued about how the F-16 fighter jet could change the war in Ukraine.

The F-16 can make a huge difference

“I would say that the F-16 can make a huge difference in the war, but it also depends on the pilots” he continued.

Hampton has some concerns

Dan “Two Dogs” Hampton is not against Ukrainian pilots flying the F-16, in the skies of the battlefield. He is concerned about their ability to adapt to the modern fighter.

Ukrainians are great pilots

“They are great pilots,” Hampton explained, “but this is a very different type of fighter than they are used to. And they would be the first to admit [that].”

Training time

“I think it takes some time to train, get used to and master a new type of aircraft, especially one as advanced as the F-16,” Hampton added.

Will Kiev be supplied with F-16s?

Discussions among high-ranking officials about sending F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine have been ongoing, for months. The United States and its allies are trying to walk the fine line of providing weapons to the invaded country in order to ensure that the best use is made of them.

Biden says no

In January, US President Joe Biden signaled that he was unwilling to send the advanced fighter jets to Ukraine after reporters pressed him on the issue.

Not Everyone Agrees

But not all politicians in his administration agree, as became clear in mid-March 2023.

Ukraine Needs the Fighters

A bipartisan group of eight senators expressed their position in a letter to Biden: “After speaking with American, Ukrainian, and foreign leaders working to support Ukraine at the Munich Security Conference last month, we believe the U.S. needs to think about providing F-16 aircraft to Ukraine.”

A watershed on the battlefield

“This would be a significant capability that could change the game on the battlefield,” the senators added, as quoted by Politico.

UK is willing to train Ukrainian pilots on NATO aircraft

In February, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak diverged from US policy. He offered training to Ukrainian pilots on NATO fighter jets, something that will be critical if Western nations eventually decide to send them to Ukraine.

American pilots receive 300 hours of air training a year

Ukrainian pilots received an average of 40-50 hours of training in their cockpits, according to Dan Hampton, while he says they spent three hundred hours a year just training.

Ukraine would need to adopt the American strategy to succeed

“We are very good at what we do. I think for the F-16 or any modern fighter to be important to the Ukrainian Air Force, they will have to throw out the old Soviet or Russian system,” the pilot said.

Acting like NATO pilots

The key to success for Ukrainian pilots, according to Hampton, will be “acting like NATO, the West and the United States, if they want to use our aircraft effectively.”

Maintenance could also be an issue

F-16 maintenance is another issue of concern for Hampton: “I’m not saying it’s everything, but it’s very important when it comes to maintaining an aircraft in a combat environment as opposed to a peace environment.”

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