Ukrainian Military Says F-16 Fighter Jet Crashed While Winning Russian Attacks

JAKARTA - The Ukrainian military confirmed on Thursday that its F-16 fighter jet crashed and its pilot died as it approached the target in Monday's Russian airstrike.

"Four enemy missiles were shot down by air weapons," the Ukrainian General Staff said in a statement.

"The connection with one of the planes was cut off as the plane approached its next target. It turned out that later, the plane crashed, the pilot was killed," the military said.

The F-16 has "shown high efficiency" and dropped four Russian cruise missiles, he added.

Meanwhile, western Ukrainian Air Force Command said on Facebook that Olexy Mes pilots were killed on a combat mission on Monday.

"Olexy saved Ukraine from the deadly Russian missile. Unfortunately, at the expense of his own life," the statement said.

Mes has Moonfish' call sign, with CNN reporting in 2023 that he is training for the F-16 mission.

Ukraine said Russia launched more than 200 missiles and drones that day targeting the energy sector.

Earlier, a US defense official said Monday's crash did not appear to have been caused by Russian fire. The possible cause was pilot error to mechanical failure and is still being investigated.

Ukraine itself has not provided details about the size of its new fleet, although the losses left significant supports. The Times of London quoted sources as saying Ukraine had six fighter jets.

Separately, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on August 4, Ukraine did not have enough trained pilots to use the F-16 or the number of fighter jets itself.

Military analysts say the small number of F-16s, although significant, is unlikely to be a turning point in the conflict.

Kyiv is known to have urged allies to supply modern jets since the start of the Russian invasion, to strengthen its small and old post-Soviet fleet.

Before Kyiv received the F-16 this year, Russia had more time to prepare for defense and Ukraine had to use a depleted air force that was only a small part of the size and sophistication of its enemies.