The United States considers it unlikely that the Ukrainian F-16 fighter jet was shot down by friendly fire on August 26.
American officials consider it unlikely that the plane that Ukraine lost during a massive Russian missile and drone strike was shot down by fire from a Patriot anti-aircraft missile system, the New York Times reported, citing anonymous sources among US officials.
Two senior U.S. military officials told the magazine there that friendly fire was probably not the cause of the F-16’s downing. The officials noted that U.S. and Ukrainian investigators are considering different theories, including mechanical failure or pilot error.
Let us recall that the first version about friendly fire from the Patriot system on the Ukrainian F-16 fighter was expressed by the people’s deputy Maryana Bezugla. The politician accused the then commander of the Air Force Mykola Oleshchuk of keeping silent about the situation. At the same time, Oleshchuk said that he did not hide the information about the F-16 aircraft destruction, explaining that during a war such information cannot immediately enter the public space.
Subsequently, President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed Mykola Oleshchuk from the post of commander of the Ukrainian Air Force.
Source: New York Times
Source: Racurs
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