US general says Western countries could eventually send aircraft to Ukraine

Western countries could provide Ukraine’s air force with aircraft and pilot training, the head of the US Air Force Chief said on Wednesday, an idea that would significantly increase Western aid to Ukraine as it battles Russian troops – but military officials say no concrete decisions have been made yet.

Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown said during an interview at the Aspen Security Forum that “there are a number of different platforms that could go to Ukraine,” including aircraft made by the United States, Sweden, France or the multinational Eurofighter consortium.

Brown added that any warplanes transferred to Ukraine – whose current air force consists mostly of Soviet-era aircraft – would likely be “something non-Russian” because obtaining spare parts for the Russian-made fighter jets could prove difficult. .

Earlier on Wednesday, Brown told Reuters that U.S. officials were debating whether to begin training Ukrainian pilots to fly Western jets, a process Ukraine claims is possible within weeks, but Brown and other experts believe could to last months.

Gen. Mark Miley, chairman of the Army Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Wednesday that the military has not yet decided whether to begin training Ukrainian pilots, but “we are looking at a wide variety of options, to include pilot training.”

The United States has increased its military support for Ukraine in recent months as Russian troops slowly gain ground in the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine.

But the Pentagon has been reluctant to grant Ukraine’s requests for fighter jets, citing logistical challenges and fears that Russia could see the move as NATO’s direct involvement in the war.

Poland proposed a three-country deal in March: The Polish military would give Ukraine some of its Soviet-era MiG-29 jets (a model also used by the Ukrainian air force), and the United States would reciprocate Poland with used U.S.-built aircraft. construction.

However, the US military quickly pushed back on the idea, with then-Pentagon spokesman John Kirby arguing that Ukraine was unlikely to see much benefit from the aircraft and that Russia might see the deal as escalation.

Meanwhile, military aid sent by the United States to Ukraine totaled $7.6 billion through early July, according to the Defense Department.

This assistance includes thousands of anti-tank and anti-aircraft systems, hundreds of Switchblade drones, several Russian-made helicopters and HIMARS precision missile systems.