Netherlands hands over last F-16s to Romania for training, including Ukrainians

The Netherlands reported on Wednesday, 20 November, that it had transferred the last two F-16 fighter jets to a training centre at the Romanian airbase of Fetesti. Source: Dutch Ministry of Defence, as reported by European Pravda Details: The last two F-16 aircraft out of the 18 promised by the Netherlands were transferred to the European F-16 Pilot Training Centre in Romania on Wednesday afternoon.

Quote from the Dutch Ministry of Defence: "Initially, the aircraft were used to train only Romanian pilots, but now they are also being used to train Ukrainian pilots."

The F-16 training centre in Fetesti was opened in November 2023 as part of Kyiv's allies' efforts to train Ukrainian pilots on Western-style fighters.

Under the cooperation agreement, the Romanian Ministry of Defence provided the airbase for the exercises, the Netherlands provided the F-16 aircraft, and Lockheed Martin provided instructors and maintenance.

Background: It was reported in September that the first group of Ukrainian pilots began training with the F-16 at the centre.

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