‘Incredible work’: Ukrainian F-16 downs Russian fighter jet for first time

KYIV, Ukraine — A Ukrainian F-16 shot down a Russian fighter jet for the first time since the American-designed planes arrived on the battlefield in 2024, the top-ranking U.S. general told Congress on Tuesday, emphasizing the impressive progress of Kyiv’s air defense forces in shielding the country’s skies.

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, pointed to the kill at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing while being asked about a three-year halt in U.S. air-defense funding.

“I want to highlight the incredible work the Ukraine industrial base is doing as they scale their own capabilities,” Caine said.

“Recently we had the first air-to-air kill where a Ukrainian F-16 shot down a Russian fighter, so I think their ability to scale their layered defense has come a long way over the last couple of years.”

Although Caine did not specify which type of Russian aircraft was taken out, Ukraine’s Air Force announced earlier this month that it had shot down a Russian Su-35 on the eastern front.

Until now, Ukraine has primarily used its F‑16s to defensively knock down incoming drones and cruise missiles — not offensively hunting enemy aircraft. The air-to-air kill is the latest example of Kyiv’s rapidly expanded air defense network forged after persevering through years of full-scale war, Caine said.

Russia’s defense ministry has not acknowledged the loss. Pro-Russian military bloggers on Telegram confirmed a Su-35 went down and said the pilot survived and ejected safely, while other Russian channels claimed a Patriot battery delivered the fatal shot.

Ukraine’s F-16s have shot down 2,200 of roughly 3,000 Russian drones and missiles it has intercepted, air force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat told Dutch broadcaster NOS earlier this month.

The kills are in spite of the technical advantages favoring Russia’s Su-35 over Ukraine’s F-16s.

Most of it’s F‑16s were given to Kyiv by the Netherlands and Denmark, who sent rebuilt 1970s‑ and 1980s‑era F‑16A and B airframes — closer to the F‑16s that the U.S. Air Force flew in the early 2000s than to today’s newer models, according to a Sandboxx analysis.

The Su‑35S is one of the most modern fighters Moscow flies and usually comes out as the winner in a long‑range fight, experts say .

Its Irbis‑E radar can detect a fighter‑sized target at up to 250 miles (400 km) in a narrow search mode, according to its Russian manufacturer, far beyond the range of the 1990s‑era AN/APG‑66(V)2 radar on Ukraine’s F‑16s.

The Su‑35 also has the advantage of carrying the longer‑reaching R‑77M missile, which Moscow credits with a range of roughly 120 miles (190 km), against the 75 to 100 miles of the AIM‑120C‑8 AMRAAMs Ukraine is known to field, according to The War Zone .

Allies have taken notice of Kyiv’s recent battlefield successes, signing billions in arms contracts with Kyiv since the war with Iran drove up demand for the latest defense tech from Europe and the Middle East.

Ukraine’s homegrown interceptor‑drone industry has scaled rapidly in the past year, with some producers now capable of turning out over 100,000 drones per month, officials say.

Washington is also inching toward a multibillion dollar weapons‑production deal with Kyiv.

The Ukrainian armed forces are “ the strongest, most powerful armed forces in all of Europe,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in May, months before the CIA director confirmed last week that Russian recruits last just 20 to 30 minutes after arriving on the battlefield thanks to Ukraine’s fierce drone fighting tactics.

乌克兰基辅——美国最高级别将领周二向国会表示，自2024年美国设计的F-16战机抵达战场以来，乌克兰F-16战机首次击落俄罗斯战斗机，这凸显了基辅防空部队在保卫国家领空方面取得的显著进展。

参谋长联席会议主席丹·凯恩将军在参议院拨款委员会听证会上被问及美国防空经费暂停三年一事时，提到了这次击杀事件。

凯恩说：“我想重点强调乌克兰工业基础在提升自身能力方面所做出的卓越贡献。”

“最近我们取得了首次空对空击落战果，一架乌克兰F-16战机击落了一架俄罗斯战斗机，所以我认为他们在过去几年里提升多层防御能力方面取得了长足进步。”

虽然凯恩没有具体说明击落的是哪种类型的俄罗斯飞机，但乌克兰空军本月早些时候宣布，他们在东线击落了一架俄罗斯苏-35战斗机。

此前，乌克兰的F-16战机主要用于防御性地击落来袭的无人机和巡航导弹，而非进攻性地猎杀敌机。凯恩表示，此次空战战果是基辅在多年全面战争的磨砺下，迅速扩张的防空网络的最新例证。

俄罗斯国防部尚未承认此次损失。Telegram上的亲俄军事博主证实一架苏-35战机坠毁，并称飞行员幸存并安全弹射；而其他俄罗斯媒体则声称，是“爱国者”导弹系统击落了这架战机。

乌克兰空军发言人尤里·伊格纳特本月早些时候告诉荷兰广播公司NOS，乌克兰的F-16战机已经击落了大约3000架俄罗斯无人机和导弹中的2200架。

尽管俄罗斯的苏-35在技术上比乌克兰的F-16具有优势，但乌克兰仍然取得了击落敌机的战果。

根据 Sandboxx 的分析，基辅的大部分 F-16 战机都是荷兰和丹麦提供的，他们提供的是 20 世纪 70 年代和 80 年代翻新的 F-16A 和 B 型飞机——这些飞机更接近美国空军在 21 世纪初使用的 F-16，而不是当今的新型号。

专家表示，苏-35S是莫斯科最先进的战斗机之一，通常在远程空战中取得胜利。

据其俄罗斯制造商称，Irbis-E 雷达在窄搜索模式下可以探测到 250 英里（400 公里）外的战斗机大小的目标，远远超过了乌克兰 F-16 战斗机上 20 世纪 90 年代的 AN/APG-66(V)2 雷达的探测范围。

据《战区》报道，苏-35 还具有携带射程更远的 R-77M 导弹的优势，莫斯科方面称其射程约为 120 英里（190 公里），而乌克兰已知的 AIM-120C-8 AMRAAM 导弹的射程为 75 至 100 英里。

盟友们已经注意到基辅最近在战场上的胜利，自伊朗战争以来，欧洲和中东对最新国防技术的需求激增，盟友们与基辅签署了价值数十亿美元的武器合同。

官员表示，乌克兰本土的拦截无人机产业在过去一年中迅速发展壮大，一些生产商现在每月能够生产超过 10 万架无人机。

华盛顿方面也在逐步推进与基辅达成一项价值数十亿美元的武器生产协议。

美国国务卿马可·卢比奥在五月份表示，乌克兰武装部队是“全欧洲最强大、最有实力的武装部队”。几个月后，中央情报局局长上周证实，由于乌克兰强大的无人机作战战术，俄罗斯新兵在战场上只能存活20到30分钟。