Air Force expert explains Mig-29 to F-16 conversion: how Ukrainian fighter pilots train

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Time and time again Volodimir Selenski (45) had to ask for it. His perseverance pays off. Ukraine gets US F-16 fighter jets. The jet fighter of the American defense company Lockheed Martin is used by 25 countries and is the most widely distributed combat aircraft in the world.

But the delivery of the jets is not enough. Ukrainian pilots need retraining. Because: The Ukrainians are currently flying old Mig-29s dating back to the Soviet Union. The last machine was produced in 1983. What sounds like a disadvantage is just the opposite.

“In principle, it can be said that the Mig-29 that the Ukrainian pilots fly and the more modern Su-27 roughly correspond to the standard of the F-16, which makes the conversion relatively easy and can be completed quickly,” says Hansjörg. Egger, ex-member of the Swiss Air Force, to Blick.

Because the F-16 is not exactly new either. It was developed in the 1970s as a manoeuvrable, relatively cheap and versatile fighter jet. Egger on Blick: “It takes a few instruction flights. The retraining should take three to four weeks.” However, this only applies to clearly defined assignments. “If the full performance of the F-16 has to be exploited, such as air-to-air, ground combat and reconnaissance, it will take correspondingly longer.”

It would look different if Ukraine got modern fighter jets, for example the F-35. “Even a trained military pilot would be overwhelmed if he knows only models from previous generations. These are totally different systems, totally different machines.” The new jets are much more complex. “It would take months to train the pilots accordingly and provide the right infrastructure.”

If it was only about flying, the Ukrainians could also take off immediately. “It’s like driving a car. If someone can drive a BMW, a Mercedes is no problem. Weapon handling and defense measures will be much more important for the pilots. That’s important in war,” explains the aviation expert.

90 percent of that retraining can be done on the ground, since the pilots only need to learn the weapon systems in the first place. And that works well in a simulator. “Basically, you could put the Ukrainians in the jets and say, ‘Here’s the button to launch the missiles and there’s the lever to fire the bomb.’ And tape off all other non-relevant instruments. The most important thing is to get the missile on target.” Everything else is irrelevant.

That would be different in times of peace, Egger explains. “You explained every detail and played through every scenario. Ukraine doesn’t have that time.”

Source: Blick