From Day One, the F-16s Went Hunting. Here’s How Much They Struck

Ukraine’s Air Force says its newly fielded F-16 fighters have carried out more than 300 successful strikes on Russian ground targets since entering service last year, underscoring how quickly the Western jets have become central to Kyiv’s air campaign, according to the Air Force Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on November 19.

The first F-16s arrived in Ukraine in August 2024 through a multinational assistance effort. Since then, officials said, the jets have been flying not only air-defense missions but also regular close-air-support sorties for Ukrainian ground forces.

“F-16 pilots have struck more than 300 ground targets, destroying hundreds of enemy vehicles, command posts, UAV control hubs, ammunition depots, and logistics nodes,” the Air Force Command said.

Ukrainian pilots and maintenance crews, the statement added, are operating “in extremely challenging conditions day after day.”

To hit Russian positions, the aircraft rely heavily on American precision munitions. Ukraine employs the 130-kilogram GBU-39/B Small Diameter Bomb, which can glide up to 110 kilometers when released from high altitude.

The Air Force also confirmed the use of heavier bombs equipped with JDAM-ER kits, which convert standard unguided bombs into GPS- and INS-guided glide weapons with fold-out wings that extend their range.y

Beyond striking ground targets, Ukraine says F-16s are also critical to defending cities and infrastructure from Russian attacks. According to the Air Force, the jets have already intercepted more than 1,300 Russian missiles and drones since arriving.

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War in Ukraine

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Officials emphasized that Ukrainian aviators are rapidly adapting Western tactics to local battlefield realities, implementing “their own innovative approaches to air and air-defense combat.”

Earlier, reports emerged that F-16 Fighting Falcon fighters supplied to Ukraine as part of Western military aid were flying roughly 80% of the Ukrainian Air Force’s combat sorties.

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