A Ukrainian F-16 pilot claims to have broken a record and downed six Russian cruise missiles during a single mission (even though the aircraft was only carrying four air-to-air missiles). Two of these cruise missiles were neutralized with the aircraft's cannon. While much has been written about how the F-16 compares to Russian fighter jets, air-to-air fighter-on-fighter engagements are comparably rare. The Ukrainians appear to be using them mostly in an air defense role ( rumors that Ukrainian F-16s have downed Russian fighter jets remain unconfirmedand unsubstantiated).

Ukraine claims F-16 took out six Russian cruise missiles

The Ukrainian Air Force claimed on January 7 that an unnamed Ukrainian pilot took down six Russian cruise missions during 13th December. Four cruise missiles are claimed to have been downed with the F-16's missiles and two with its cannon. On 13th December 2024, Russia is claimed to have launched almost 200 drones and 94 missiles.

The Ukrainian Air Force Command spokesperson Yurii Ihnat stated in an interview with the piot, "They say that even Americans couldn't believe you did it." It should be noted that many claims are made during conflicts and it is not possible to independently verify many of them (including this one).

According to Yurii, the Ukrainian F-16 was carrying only four air-to-air missiles (two medium-range and two short-range). These were likely AIM-120 AMRAAM and AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles. After taking out the first two missiles, the Ukrainian pilot stated, "I flew up to the second pair, locked on to the missiles, and saw that they were also ‘emitting Russian EW signals,’ but it didn’t help them much. The first missile hit the target, and the second one did too! There was no limit to my joy because I saw all the hits on enemy missiles with my own eyes!"

Out of missiles, the F-16 pilot remembered it was just like how he had been trained with simulators (Ukrainian F-16 pilots hadn't used the aircraft's cannon against missiles before). He recalled, "I did everything as the instructors in the US taught me, as I practiced on the simulator. A few rounds from the cannon – and an explosion… then another! A repeat detonation… I thought, but as it turned out, according to the results of objective control, there were two missiles!"

Something similar happened in 2024 during a US engagement. A US pilot flying an F-15E Strike Eagle took out Iranian drones as they flew to Israel. He went "Winchester," meaning he ran out of missiles. He then attempted to hit the slow-flying drones in the pitch black with his cannon but missed.

The F-16 Fighting Falcon carries a single 20 mm (0.787 in) M61A1 Vulcan 6-barrel rotary cannon with 511 rounds (far more than the F-35A, which only carries 180 rounds). The engagement suggests that autocannons on fighter jets are not obsolete—at least not yet anyway. The F-35B and F-35C models do not carry an internal cannon, but they can be fitted with external gun pods.

Western fighter jets begin arriving in Ukraine

The first F-16s arrived in Ukraine in August 2024, and soon after one crashed in mysterious circumstances while engaging Russian drones. It's possible the F-16 accidently rammed the slow-flying drone.

Ukraine has so far received the first two batches of F-16 Fighting Falcons pledged by European allies. Ukraine is expected to eventually receive around 100 F-16s (although the last won't be supplied until 2028). The United States Air Force still operates over 750 F-16s, and many have been retired. However, none of the pledged airframes have come from the United States (they have come from Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Belgium, and possibly Greece).

One of the biggest constraints Ukraine has with fielding the F-16s is training enough pilots ( Ukraine is now planning to shorten the F-16 pilot training program). Separately, France is expected to hand over the first batch of three Mirage 2000-5F fighter jets this month out of around 10 planned.