In a shocking turn of events, the F-16 fighter jets, heralded as Ukraine's 'wonder weapon' and awaited since May 2023, met a disastrous fate during their inaugural mission. On August 26, amidst a massive air raid involving Geranium drones and Khinzal missiles, reports indicated that the F-16 was either shot down or destroyed while preparing for action, raising critical questions about its operational readiness and the state of coordination within the Ukrainian military. Veteran pilot Oleskyi Mês lost his life in the incident, which has sparked a flurry of conflicting narratives from both Russian and Ukrainian sources. As details emerge, the controversy surrounding the F-16's demise exposes deeper issues within Ukraine's military command and the ongoing struggles in the war effort.
GP: Awaited since May 2023, the F-16 fighter planes were the last in a series of ‘wonder weapons’ that were expected to turn the tide of the war in Ukraine – but did not.
While it’s shocking in itself that the much-awaited plane would be destroyed in its very first mission, when we investigate how it could have happened, it becomes even more disturbing.
The incident occurred during the August 26th mass air raid over Ukraine, where Geranium drones and a variety of missiles – including supersonic Khinzals – brought destruction to all regions of Ukraine.
The Russian Federation sources claim the plane was hit on the ground during refueling – probably preparing to scramble out of harm’s way.
Ukrainian sources, for their part, claim it crashed while on a flight trying to bring down attacking drones.
Some outlying claims have the fighter shot down in an ambush by a Russian Su-57.
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| Ukrainian pilot Oleskyi Mês. |
What everyone seems to agree is that the F-18’s crash or otherwise means of destruction killed veteran Ukrainian pilot Oleskyi Mês.
But what seems the most disturbing is a version of the events floated by a Ukrainian deputy of the Vekhovna Rada Maryana Bezuhla:
“According to my information, the F-16 of the Ukrainian pilot (squadron commander) Alexey ‘Moonfish’ Mes was shot down by a Patriot air defense missile system due to a lack of coordination between units. The reports noted that he ‘lost control’.
The event occurred during one of the most powerful air attacks by the Russians on August 26.
War is war, such episodes are possible. But the culture of lies in the Ukrainian Air Force Command, as well as in other senior military headquarters, leads to the fact that the military decision-making system does not improve based on truthful, consistently collected analytics, but worsens and even collapses, as is happening in the Pokrovsky direction. And not a single general has been punished. General Oleshchuk remains in office,” said Maryana Bezuglaya.”
As for US sources, Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh has confirmed the loss of the plane, but refused to comment on whether it was indeed a Patriot that brought the plane down.
Simplicius on Substack:
“It’s also quite possible—and in fact probably more plausible than the official story—that the F-16 did not gloriously go down swinging, after heroically shooting down several Russian drones and missiles, but that it was infact destroyed on the ground just as the Russian MOD had stated. You’ll recall during the large-scale strikes days ago, the Russian MOD said two F-16s were potentially destroyed in their hangars.”
🇺🇦‼️ “The F-16 was shot down by a Patriot air defense system during the massive missile attacks on August 26 due to a lack of coordination between Ukrainian Air Force units”
— Lord Bebo (@MyLordBebo) August 29, 2024
— Bezugla, People's Deputy of Ukraine pic.twitter.com/9rY2n8q2wU