A Russian official in Ukraine’s Kherson region has reported that a US-supplied F-16 fighter jet has been seen flying over the southern Ukrainian territory which lies just north of Crimea. This marks a first sighting in Ukrainian skies, after this past weekend President Zelensky confirmed the arrival of the initial batch of the jet fighters from European partners.

Pavel Filipchuk, the head of the administration of the Kakhovka municipal district in the Kherson Region, posted to Telegram Thursday the following message: “F-16s have been flying over our district since yesterday.” No verified video of the flights over the region have emerged just yet, however.

Illustrative: Ukrainian presidency’s office

The Russian official followed by expressed confidence that “they will be shot down and destroyed soon,” according to state-run Sputnik. 

“F-16s in Ukraine. We did it,” President Zelensky said at a Sunday ceremony from an unnamed airbase, allowing reporters to view two of the parked aircraft. The Economist later indicated that ten have so far been delivered, out of a pledged total of 79.

Russia’s reaction has been to vow that the jets will be destroyed just like the US and European-supplied tanks from earlier in the conflict:

Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov previously vowed that Western-made F-16s flying for Ukraine would be “shot down”.

“But of course, these deliveries will not have any significant impact on the development of events on the front,” he added.

The consensus among even Western mainstream media is that the F-16s will not be a game-changer. Additionally, Zelensky is already pressing Washington and its allies for more.

One of the delivered F-16 in service with the PS ZSU armed with AIM-120 AMRAAMs somewhere in Ukraine. @John_A_Ridge
Source https://t.co/MjYUtaCx61 pic.twitter.com/t5Iy95CcEo

— War Armor (@WarArmor13) August 8, 2024

Prior statements of US defense officials confirmed that the Pentagon is equipping the F-16s with advanced weaponry and modern missiles.

As the The Wall Street Journal previously indicated, this will include air-to-ground AGM-88 HARM missiles, bomb sights, diameter bombs, AMRAAM advanced air-to-air missiles, and AIM-9X short-range air-to-air missiles.