Sending F-16s to Ukraine Is the Right Choice, but It Will Be a Tough Fight | Opinion

Ukraine’s allies in the West are finally ready to help Ukraine obtain F-16 fighters and train pilots how to fly them. That will constitute a major upgrade for an air force full of Soviet jets all built prior to 1992. Training pilots and maintainers to fly F-16s will take months, meaning they won’t enter the picture until late 2023 at the very earliest. And if they see combat, Ukrainian F-16 pilots will face a tough fight against Russia’s materially more powerful air force and many ground-based anti-aircraft systems. That said, just because something is hard and doesn’t mean it isn’t…