During the next meeting of the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group in Ramstein, the training of Ukrainian pilots and technical personnel on Western fighter jets will be discussed.

Oleksii Reznikov, Minister of Defense of Ukraine, made the statement.

The new meeting of defense ministers of Ukraine’s allies will be held on June 15.

This will be the 13th meeting in the Ramstein format, taking place in Brussels.

“During the meeting, we will discuss the details of the ‘aircraft coalition’. In this case, we are talking about the training of pilots, and not only pilots, but also our technicians and engineers who will deal with aircraft maintenance. Because this is a very complex system. The issue will be discussed meaningfully with the teams of the defense ministries of the Netherlands, Denmark, the USA, and other countries that have joined this coalition,” Reznikov said.

Reznikov emphasized that he had already included representatives of the Air Force of Ukraine in the Ukrainian delegation.

“The Air Force Commander, Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk, identified the responsible officers who oversee the training of pilots and logistical issues,” the Minister said.

Also, at the meeting in the Ramstein format, they will discuss the strengthening of Ukrainian air defense, the supply of artillery shells, as well as the ability to repair and maintain equipment and weapons that were transferred to Ukraine as part of military aid.

“Therefore, the opening of various types of hubs for repairing and maintaining equipment is important to us. Both in the territory of Ukraine, together with partners, and in friendly bordering countries,” Oleksii Reznikov summed up.

In an interview with Ukrainian Pravda, the spokesman of the Ukrainian Air Force, Yurii Ihnat, said that in the first wave Ukraine will send its best pilots who have passed a strict selection for the training in operation of F-16 fighter jets.

“The pilots are already, as they say, ready to jump, the first wave has been selected – the best pilots, who have combat experience, who have hundreds of flight hours, who are young and speak English,” Ihnat said.

As previously reported, the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky announced that a certain number of countries confirmed that they would provide Ukraine with their F-16 fighter jets.