Poland’s PGZ May Join Repairs of Ukraine’s F-16s and MiG-29s

Polish state-owned defense group Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa (PGZ) is considering joining the repair and maintenance of Ukraine’s F-16 and MiG-29 fighter jets.

PGZ CEO Adam Leszkiewicz announced the plans in an interview with Ukrinform, saying several companies within the group are already working with Ukrainian defense manufacturers.

“We are currently discussing providing support, repairs, and maintenance for the F-16 and MiG-29 aircraft supplied to Ukraine by its partners. We are also already cooperating on the production of selected components for ammunition and missiles used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces,” Leszkiewicz stated.

He added that defense cooperation between Poland and Ukraine initially focused on armored vehicles and Ukraine’s purchase of Krab self-propelled howitzers produced by Huta Stalowa Wola.

At the end of January, Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov stated that Ukraine and Poland were deepening their cooperation in the defense sector.

He noted that one area of cooperation was strengthening the Ukrainian Air Force and jointly working on the modernization of MiG-29 fighter jets that Poland planned to transfer to Ukraine. The transfer involves up to nine aircraft, as announced in December 2025.

Polish MiG-29s for Ukraine

Meanwhile, yesterday, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, Poland’s Minister of National Defence, shared on the air of the Gość Wydarzeń on Polsat News that Poland would not transfer MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine because Kyiv had refused to share its drone technologies.

He was likely referring to interceptor drones, which were initially described as counter-drone solutions and later classified more broadly as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

Kosiniak-Kamysz noted that Poland had offered Ukraine a “partnership approach” based on the formula “MiGs in exchange for drones.” According to the Minister, the Ukrainian side initially agreed to the proposal but later backed away from the arrangement.

“The Ukrainians initially agreed, but they did not honor the agreement. Therefore, there will be no MiGs for Ukraine, because Poland has neither drones nor the capability to use them,” the Polish Minister said.

He acknowledged that Ukraine possesses significant expertise in unmanned technologies and argued that the exchange of experience and technology should have become an important component of bilateral military cooperation between the two countries.