During the briefing, the spokesman of the Air Force of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Yuriy Ignat, commented on the readiness of Slovakia and Poland to transfer MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine, noting that this is "good news". He added that these planes will probably be used to repair the Ukrainian aviation fleet, UNN reports.
"The fact that the aviation complexes are transferring is good news because the transfer of combat aircraft has been moved... If the combat aircraft are already transferred, the other part of the question is in what condition they can be transferred, how we will use them . Any help is definitely good news for us, as we will be able to increase the combat capability of the fleet of aircraft that we have today," the spokesman said.
He added that the planes that the partners can transfer to Ukraine are likely to be "donor spare parts" for the MiG-29s, which are already in service with Ukraine.
"The aircraft that can be handed over to us can become part of a repair kit that can keep our MiGs in combat condition. In simple words, the engine can be removed from the aircraft and installed, because we do not have the ability to manufacture unique spare parts at our factories, because these aircraft were produced back in the Soviet Union," Ignat explained.
He once again reiterated that the planes in service in Ukraine are morally and physically obsolete and work at the limit of their capabilities, and the pilots, countering the enemy, "do wonders for them." Ignat noted that currently Russian planes are technically superior to Ukrainian ones, so the country needs better equipment to better oppose the invaders in the air.
"Why do we need Western planes like the F-16? First of all, it is to protect our Ukrainian skies from air terrorism... It is the Western fighter planes that, thanks to their powerful radars and the latest missiles, can effectively oppose both the Shahed and the winged rockets," the spokesman added.
In addition, he emphasized that the new fighters will help to dominate the airspace in the temporarily occupied territories, to cut off the enemy's supply routes.
Polish President Andrzej Duda said in an interview with CNN that Poland is ready to hand over its MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine as part of the international coalition. Duda also noted the need to start training Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16 combat aircraft.
Slovak Defense Minister Jaroslav Nagy confirmed that Poland agreed to the joint transfer of MiG-29s to Ukraine.
