American ace ready to take flight: F‑16s in Ukraine battle

The first F-16 planes have arrived in Ukraine, and as Volodymyr Zelensky reported, they are already in use. The American fighter planes are familiar to retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Dan Hampton. The pilot has reiterated his desire to fly for Ukraine and help them win the war.

Dan Hampton, a retired lieutenant colonel known as "the best F-16 pilot in the U.S. Air Force", said last year in an interview with Voice of America that he is ready to personally pilot planes for the Ukrainian army if needed. Hampton has extensive experience, having flown for two decades in the American armed forces, participating in conflicts in the Persian Gulf, Kosovo, and Iraq.

As he admitted, "You can't win a war from the air, but you can lose it if you don't control the airspace." Therefore, he supported sending F-16 fighters to Ukraine and proposed hiring pilots who were familiar with the aircraft. Now that the aircraft has reached the fighting Ukrainians, the American pilot has confirmed his willingness to fly for Ukraine.

You can count on me. The Ukrainian government can hire private contractors who know how to fly F-16s. It will buy you time and help win the war, said Dan Hampton, quoted on the X portal by @technicznybdg.

Dan Hampton served in the U.S. Air Force from 1986 to 2006. As indicated by Business Insider, he carried out 151 combat flights during that time. He is also the most decorated American aviator since the Vietnam War.

A few days ago, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that the much-awaited F-16s had arrived in Ukraine. We often heard the word "impossible," but we made possible what was our ambition, our defense need. And now it's a reality in our skies. The F-16s are in Ukraine. We achieved this, said the Ukrainian leader quoted by Interfax-Ukraine.

At the same time, Zelensky emphasized that the number of fighters and trained pilots is still insufficient. The number of aircraft that have arrived in Ukraine, as well as the tasks they have already completed and will perform in the future, remains secret.