KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — One of the handful of F-16 warplanes that Ukraine has received from its Western partners to help fight Russia’s invasion has crashed, Ukraine’s Army General Staff said Thursday. The pilot died.
The fighter jet went down on Monday, when Russia launched a major missile and drone barrage at Ukraine, a military statement posted on Facebook said. Four of those Russian missiles were shot down by F-16s, the statement said.
The crash was the first reported loss of an F-16 in Ukraine, where they arrived at the end of last month. At least six of the warplanes are believed to have been delivered.
The Defense Ministry has opened an investigation into the crash.
Earlier Thursday, Russia conducted a heavy aerial attack on Ukraine for the third time in four days, again launching missiles and scores of drones that mostly were intercepted, Ukraine’s air force said.
Russian forces fired five missiles and 74 Shahed drones at Ukrainian targets, an air force statement said. Air defenses stopped two missiles and 60 drones, and 14 other drones presumably fell before reaching their target, it said.
Authorities in the capital, Kyiv, said debris of destroyed drones fell in three districts of the city, causing minor damage to civilian infrastructure but no injuries.
Russia’s relentless and unnerving long-range strikes on civilian areas have been a feature of the war since it invaded its neighbor in February 2022.
Belgium, Denmark the Netherlands and Norway — all NATO members — have committed to providing Ukraine with more than 60 of the planes. That number is dwarfed by the Russian jet fighter fleet, which is around 10 times larger.
Ukraine needs at least 130 F-16 fighter jets to neutralize Russian air power, Kyiv officials say.
U.S. officials told The Associated Press at the end of last month that the first of a batch of F-16s promised by European countries had arrived in Ukraine.
Military analysts have said their arrival won’t be a game-changer in the war, given Russia’s massive air force and sophisticated air defense systems. But Ukrainian officials welcomed them as offering an opportunity to hit back at Russia’s air superiority.
Ukraine has until now been using Soviet-era warplanes, and its pilots underwent intense training on the F-16s in the West for months. The usual training period is three years.
U.S. President Joe Biden granted authorization in August 2023 for the U.S.-built warplanes to be sent to Ukraine. That came after months of pressure from Kyiv and internal debate in the U.S. administration where officials feared the move could escalate tensions with the Kremlin.
The F-16s can fly up to twice the speed of sound and have a maximum range of more than 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometers). They can also fire modern weapons used by NATO countries.
Ukrainian officials have recently become more vocal in their long-standing insistence that Western countries supporting their war effort should scrap restrictions on what Ukraine is allowed to target inside Russia with long-range weapons they have provided.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy renewed his pleas for Western allies to untie his hands in deciding what to strike on Russian soil.
“All our partners should be more active — much more active — in countering Russian terror,” Zelenskyy said late Wednesday. “We continue to insist that their determination now — lifting the restrictions on long-range strikes for Ukraine now — will help us to end the war as soon as possible in a fair way for Ukraine and the world as a whole.”
The European Union’s top diplomat on Thursday backed Zelenskyy's push for international backers to end their limits.
Ukraine has deployed domestically produced drones to strike Russia.
The Russian military said Thursday it had thwarted an overnight attack on Crimea. The Russian Defense Ministry said its forces destroyed three Ukrainian sea drones aimed at the Black Sea peninsula that Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
The Russia-installed governor of Sevastopol Mikhail Razvozhayev added that four Ukrainian aerial drones and three sea drones were destroyed “at a significant distance” from the peninsula’s shore.
In the meantime, Ukraine’s Army General Staff acknowledged Thursday Ukraine’s involvement in strikes this week on oil depots deep inside Russia, where blazes broke out.
The attacks in the Rostov and Kirov regions were part of Ukraine's effort to disrupt logistical infrastructure supporting Russia's war machine.
Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
In this photo taken Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, the Ukrainian Air Force's F-16 fighter jet flies in an undisclosed location in Ukraine. One of the handful of F-16 warplanes that Ukraine has received from its Western partners to help fight Russia's invasion crashed on Monday, Aug. 26, when Russia launched a major missile and drone barrage at Ukraine, Ukraine's military officials said on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
In this photo taken from video released by the Russian Defense Ministry on Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, Russian soldiers fires from a 203-mm self-propelled gun 2S7 "Pion" towards Ukrainian positions in an undisclosed location in Ukraine. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Earlier in this turbulent week for the Miami Dolphins, Mike McDaniel joked that enough people had seen him cry.
The Dolphins coach was referring to a news conference in which he choked back tears while reflecting on a controversial traffic stop involving Tyreek Hill hours before Miami's season opener. Five days later, McDaniel sat down for another news conference not 24 hours after a Thursday night game against the Buffalo Bills, and he again couldn't hide his emotions.
His quarterback, Tua Tagovailoa, is in the concussion protocol, dealing with his third diagnosed concussion in three years after colliding head-first with defensive back Damar Hamlin and hitting the back of his head against the turf.
McDaniel ran onto the field to check on Tagovailoa, who sat up after a few minutes and was helped to his feet by trainers. As McDaniel walked with Tagovailoa to the sideline, he gave his quarterback a kiss on the side of the head.
“I told him he’s the starting quarterback of his family,” McDaniel said Friday morning, speaking slowly and somberly as he recounted the moment, “and to go in the locker room, take a deep breath and I’ll see you soon.”
The game Thursday was in part about rallying past another emotional event that Miami players and coaches described as both triggering and troubling.
All-Pro receiver Hill has been at the center of a national debate on the use of force by police after body camera footage showed the traffic stop escalated quickly after a verbal dispute between Hill and Miami-Dade police officers.
Hill put up the window of his car despite an officer's instruction to keep it open. After a back and forth about the window, the video shows an officer pull Hill out of his car by his arm and head and then force him face-first onto the ground near Hard Rock Stadium. Officers handcuffed Hill and one put a knee in the middle of his back.
The altercation, and what was seen on the six officers’ bodycam videos, has again brought to the forefront conversations surrounding the experience of Black people with police.
“What if I wasn’t Tyreek Hill? Lord knows what that guy or guys would have done,” Hill said hours after the incident. “I was just making sure that I was doing what my uncle always told me to do whenever you’re in a situation like that: just listen, put your hands on the steering wheel and just listen. You’ve got to be careful.”
Police Department Director Stephanie Daniels put Officer Danny Torres on administrative duty, and an internal affairs investigation is underway. The department released the identity of Torres, a 27-year veteran of the department, on Tuesday.
Hill has since said he could have handled some parts of the initial interaction better, but he and some teammates also said they would be able to separate the incident from their football duties.
“I think that’s the beauty of the sport,” said offensive lineman Terron Armstead. "You get a chance to escape real-world issues for that time slot. I think there’s no better place in the world that Tyreek could’ve been following that but a locker room and a football game. That’s the beauty of that sport, that you get that time to escape and enter a world that is kind of a fantasy for us.”
Hill caught an 80-yard touchdown pass that helped Miami come from behind to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars that day, but Hill and the Dolphins weren't able to replicate that magic on Thursday.
Hill was limited to three catches and 24 yards, and Miami's offense was stifled in a 31-10 loss to their division rivals.
Losing to the Bills again was hard enough. Buffalo has won 12 of the last 13 meetings between them. That disappointment was overshadowed by fear, uncertainty and concern for Tagovailoa.
“Stuff like this, losses are tough,” McDaniel said. "Ones that you’ve really built yourself up to try to get done ... that’s really tough and then you have your heart completely involved with it — I look at Tua as a family member of mine. When family is going through something, you know how it is. You’re trying to think about a ton of different stuff that people are counting on me to think about. Not easy.”
Players from both teams immediately waved for trainers when Tagovailoa went down after scrambling for a first down.
Tagovailoa wound up on his back, both his hands in the air. He appeared to be making a fist with his right hand as he lay on the ground. It was a movement consistent with something referred to as the “fencing response,” which can be common after a brain injury.
He was immediately diagnosed with a concussion — his third since joining the Dolphins as the fifth-overall pick in 2020.
McDaniel said Friday there are more unknowns surrounding the situation than certainty at this point. He said the Dolphins will bring in another quarterback eventually, but he did not want to rush to judgment on any timelines, or on Tagovailoa's future in the NFL.
“For me, I absolutely positively will not do anything to make anything worse or hurt any one of our players, ” McDaniel said, “specifically guys that are in concussion protocol. Ironically, I think there’s a lot of people that have vested interest in the Miami Dolphins. There’s a lot of fans and there’s a lot of people that want to support, but quite literally, questioning timelines, that gives forth anxiety.”
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Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) and Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin (3) collide during the second half of an NFL football game, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. Tagovailoa suffered a concussion on the play. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) lies on the field after suffering a concussion during the second half of an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel talks to quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) as he leaves the game after suffering a concussion during the second half of an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel talks during a news conference following an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
