U.S. to Arm Ukraine’s F-16 Jets With Advanced Weapons

Though the Pentagon has limited inventory and production capability, it will supply the F-16s with air-to-ground munitions, precision-guidance kits for bombs and advanced air-to-air missiles in sufficient quantities to meet Ukraine’s most urgent needs, a senior U.S. official said.

The F-16 is one of the highest-profile pieces of equipment the West has offered Ukraine as it seeks to turn the tide in a war that has been reduced to incremental battlefield gains. Both the Ukrainians and the countries donating the aircraft say the F-16s will bolster Kyiv’s military forces, but acknowledge the challenges that lie ahead in training enough pilots, maintaining the aircraft and determining how best to use them.