US-made F-16 fighter jet crashes in Ukraine

The first F-16 has been lost in Ukraine, the WSJ reports, citing a US official. According to the US official, the fighter crashed on Monday.

Initial indications are that the plane was not shot down by Russian fire, although the incident did occur during a massive missile attack on Monday. Most likely, the crash happened due to pilot errorthe publication writes. Earlier, the Lutsk City Council reported the death of military pilot Oleksiy Mes, who participated in the program for training Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16s.

It is reported that Lutsk resident Mes' Alexey Sergeyevich, born on October 20, 1993, served under contract and was enlisted in the personnel of the military unit as a squadron support commander – deputy commander of the operational group. Lieutenant Colonel Mes' died on August 26 while performing a combat mission. No other details were reported.

Earlier, the press service of the 144th Fighter Wing of the US Air National Guard reported that Mes was trained on the F-16 in the States.

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