The pilots are located in Tucson, Arizona (western United States), for what is “essentially a discussion among members of the Air Force and an observation of how the United States Air Force operates”, said a soldier. This event “of familiarization (…) allows us to better help Ukrainian pilots to become more efficient pilots and to better advise them on how to develop their own abilities”, he added.
These two pilots will not fly in aircraft during this event, but they will use a flight simulator, the military official said. “The program involves looking at how Ukrainian pilots conduct their mission planning and execution in flight simulators to determine how we can better advise the Ukrainian Air Force on how to utilize the capabilities that ‘she has and that we have given them’, another official said. This program reminds that of the United Kingdom announced in February about the launch of combat aircraft training for Ukrainian pilots.
The military authorities also added that “there are no immediate plans to increase the number of pilots beyond the two currently in Tucson, but we are not closing the door to future opportunities.” Another official insisted that it was “to help them make better use of their own capabilities and the capabilities we have provided them on their own aircraft”.