Western and US officials are questioning whether Ukraine had deployed F-16 fighter jets in combat too soon, as per a report. Kyiv had been lobbying Western allies for dozens of F-16s to strengthen its diminishing Soviet-era air fleet. An F-16 from the first allied batch crashed last week during a Russian drone and missile barrage, killing one of Ukraine’s most experienced pilotsThe WSJ* reported that the aircraft disappeared from radar shortly after a Russian missile exploded near it, possibly damaging the F-16.
