Ukrainian Air Force Warns its New F-16s Are Far Outmatched By Russian Fighters and Air Defences

The Ukrainian Air Force has found its newly acquired F-16s to be far outmatched by Russian fighters and air defence systems, according to a statement by spokesman Yuri Ignat on June 3. "Unfortunately, today Russia has jets that see farther and missiles that fly farther. That’s even when compared to F-16s. They also have powerful air defences, which work in tandem with aviation,” he stated. His statement was made less than a month after the Air Force lost its third F-16, which was <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/ukraine-loses-third-f16-engagement" >destroyed</a> on May 16 during an engagement with Russian targets thought to be drones or cruise missiles. The preceding F-16 loss, announced on April 12, occurred deep inside Ukrainian controlled airspace, and was widely assessed by analysts to be the likely <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/russia-s40n6-400km-shoot-down-f16" >result of targeting</a> by Russian ground-based air defence systems using a very long range 40N6 surface-to-air missile. Ukraine has been pledged 80 flightworthy F-16s as aid, including 30 from Belgium 24 from the Netherlands, 19 from Denmark, and 12 from Norway, with additional non-flightworthy airframes having been pledged by Norway and the United States to be cannibalised for spare parts.&nbsp;The first F-16s arrived in the country on August 1.&nbsp;<img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2025/06/04/article_683fc0fd58d6d7_75780074.jpeg" title="Ukrainian Air Force F-16 with External Fuel Tanks and Air-to-Air Missiles">The Ukrainian Air Force has <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/ukrainian-air-force-laments-f16-cant-compete-russian-su35">previously highlighted</a> the F-16’s limitations against the Russian fleet, which is comprised of fighters that are not only much more modern, but also much larger carrying radars several times as large and significantly longer ranged weaponry.&nbsp;Spokesman Yuri Ignat in March compared the F-16 to the Russian&nbsp;<a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/su35-dud-ten-years-expect">Su-35 ‘4+ generation’ fighter</a>, stating: “The modifications that Ukraine has cannot compete one-on-one in an air battle. We need a comprehensive approach as the [Russian] Su-35 is a relatively new jet… This includes ground-based air defence, electronic warfare systems, and ideally, an airborne radar. Also crucial are onboard radars for our aircraft and air-to-air missiles.” The Su-35 has been employed extensively to counter Ukrainian air power since February 2022, although its capabilities have been <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/mig-31bsm-foxhound-interceptor-vs-su-35-flanker-which-is-russia-s-most-dangerous-jet-for-aerial-combat">overshadowed</a> by those of the <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/foxhound-40yrs-ukraine-war-fight">MiG-31BM interceptor </a>and <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/su57-arsenal-unique-engagement-range">Su-57 fifth generation fighter</a> which have also been <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/british-sources-su57-r37m-shoot-down-ukrainians">involved in air-to-air engagements</a>.&nbsp;Russian industry is currently working to significantly <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/russian-air-force-su35-production-scale" target="_blank">expand production</a> of the Su-35, which it has already achieved for the Su-34 and Su-57 fighters.&nbsp;<img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2025/06/04/article_683fc172683905_16351145.png" title="F-16 Block 70">F-16s supplied to Ukraine have all been second hand early models dating back to the 1980s, and not only rely on obsolete mechanically scanned array radars, but also lack the Link 16 data link system which leaves their ability to operate as part of a network with other assets highly limited. The considerable cost of modernising F-16s to the <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/taiwan-commissions-64-local-f16vs" target="_blank">F-16V standard</a>, or of procuring modern <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/republic-china-air-force-receives-first-f16-block70" target="_blank">F-16 Block 70/72 fighters</a>, means transfers of modern variants are unlikely to materialise for the foreseeable future, particularly when considering major production bottlenecks that are <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/taiwan-f16s-late-no-penalties" >slowing deliveries</a> to paying clients. Modern F-16s cost several times more to procure than Cold War era variants, with the F-16 Block 70 fighters purchased for the Bulgarian Air Force in July 2019 having an average cost of $157.5 million per fighter including accompanying weaponry, spare parts and maintenance infrastructure. Even if F-16s modernised to the latest standard were procured, they are still expected to face a steep disadvantage against higher end Russian combat jets such as the MiG-31BM and Su-57 and air defence systems such as the S-400. Unlike the F-16, Ukraine’s other high profile Western-supplied aerial warfare system, the MIM-104 Patriot air defence system, is notably not heavily downgraded and has similar capabilities to the most advanced systems fielded by NATO members. The Patriot’s performance has nevertheless been sharply criticised, and after <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/patriot-destroyed-russian-iskander-missile" >multiple successive losses</a> to Russian Iskander-M ballistic missile strikes, the Ukrainian Air Force in late May <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/patriot-effectiveness-questioned-ukrainian-air-force" >acknowledged</a> its serious limitations defending against such attacks. &nbsp;