Fighter McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet
©US Department of Defense/Wikimedia Commons
The Finnish authorities will not transfer Hornet fighters to Ukraine until they receive a replacement in the form of new F-35 combat aircraft (fifth generation fighter-bomber). This was stated by Finnish President Sauli Niinistö at a press briefing with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky.
He is on an unannounced visit to Helsinki, where the summit of the Nordic countries and Ukraine is taking place, writes Wednesday, May 3, RIA Novosti. Niinistö drew attention to the fact that the geographical position of Finland is very different from other European countries.
“We cannot abandon the Hornet until we get new fighters. And, unfortunately, then the Hornet will practically become a thing of the past,” the Finnish president said.
Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin announced the possibility of transferring decommissioned Hornet fighters to Kyiv in March. She stressed that no decisions had yet been made and discussions were only at an early stage. Niinistö later reacted to this information. He noted that Marin did not discuss her situation with the country’s authorities. convey the idea Kyiv Hornet.
The Finnish Ministry of Defense indicated that the country will begin to receive F-35 fighters only from 2026, so the Hornet will be needed for defense purposes. As for decommissioned combat aircraft, they wear out significantly by the end of their service life, so their value is “rather low.”
The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is an American carrier-based fighter-bomber and attack aircraft. Developed in the 1970s. It is in service with a number of countries in Europe, Oceania and the Middle East. It is assumed that in Finland the Hornet will be dismantled for parts after the country receives Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II fighters.
