Jets to Ukraine: Crucial questions over supplying F-16s to Kyiv

The US says it volition enactment the transportation of precocious combatant jets to Ukraine by allowing Western allies to proviso American-made F-16s to Kyiv and by grooming Ukrainian pilots to usage the jets.

It would surely beryllium a subject boost for Kyiv - but the devil is successful the detail.

The important questions are: however many, however quickly, and what weapons volition the jets volition travel supplied with?

No-one doubts the quality of the F-16, which has much than proved itself successful conflicts astir the world.

They volition beryllium a measurement up from Ukraine's Soviet epoch Mig-29s and Su-27s, which alert comparable missions.

The F-16 radar tin spot further, allowing hostile craft to beryllium engaged astatine longer ranges.

They typically travel with missiles that bash not necessitate the craft to support a radar fastener to deed their people - a capableness that Russia presently has, but Ukraine does not.

F-16s tin besides motorboat precision bombs guided by laser, GPS, and precocious targeting systems, and are amended astatine targeting and destroying force ground-based radars than Ukraine's existent combatant jets.

But it isn not yet wide which of these capabilities would beryllium made disposable to Ukraine if the transportation of the jets goes ahead.

Training and transportation volition besides beryllium a situation for Ukraine. The machine systems connected committee - specified arsenic the avionics - run successful a precise antithetic mode to Soviet aircraft.

In combat, pilots request to instinctively prime multiple, close modes successful analyzable scenarios wherever they are astatine hazard of being overwhelmed by rapidly processing events - a concern known arsenic task-saturation.

Imagine arsenic a car operator switching from a Renault to a Mercedes, and having to instantly cognize the presumption of the headlight switches, the wipers and the fog lights - each connected a hugely much analyzable level. It takes clip and practice.

Ukrainian pilots volition person grooming connected bespoke simulators. But it is besides highly apt they would person been practising connected commercially disposable software, which delivers a precise adjacent practice of the workflow required to run an F-16.

Numbers are besides key. It is small usage sending fractional a twelve jets which connected their ain mightiness beryllium susceptible to the mighty Su-35s operated by Russia.

Combat craft are astir effectual successful packages wherever jets are grouped unneurotic for definite roles - each to transportation retired 1 circumstantial mission.

For example, if the ngo is to neutralise an force radar installation, you mightiness privation a "four-ship" comprising 4 jets to transportation the missiles oregon the bombs to destruct that structure.

That relation is called a Suppression of Enemy Air Defences (SEAD) strike. But you bash not privation that captious formation itself to beryllium susceptible to attack.

So you mightiness person different 4 craft flying up successful a "SEAD escort" role, equipped with air-to-air weapons, to support the SEAD onslaught from force planes.

The constituent is each this requires galore aircraft, and they request to beryllium supported by different assets.

That would see surveillance planes to pass astir force fighters successful the area, crushed attraction crews to guarantee the upkeep of the jets and having, of course, the indispensable infrastructure to instrumentality disconnected and onshore safely.

So the US determination to springiness the OK to different nations to proviso F-16s marks the commencement of a analyzable process and overmuch enactment volition beryllium required to get to delivery.