WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd July, 2023) The United States is trying to accelerate the training of Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets, but this process takes time, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on Friday.
"The typical training for F-16 pilots takes a very long time, and we are trying to accelerate it, but that requires technical adjustments," Sullivan said at the Aspen Security Forum.
Washington is cooperating with its allies in the Netherlands, Romania, Denmark, Norway and other countries to establish the locations, to identify the pilots, and to begin the training, and this process has been going on over the past weeks, he added.
"I cannot give you a precise date, but I can tell you this is a matter of weeks, it is not a matter of months," Sullivan said on the timeline for the training.
Sullivan also pointed out that there are several issues in the training process, including translating manuals into the Ukrainian language and creating technical platforms to conduct the process "as rapidly as possible."
The US will not stop these efforts until Ukrainian pilots can work with F-16s, he added.
Earlier this month, Pentagon's Joint Staff Director for Operations Lt. Gen. Douglas Sims II said that the conditions on the battlefield in Ukraine were not "ideal" for using F-16 fighter jets given that Russia continues to possess air defense capabilities.
