Ukraine has devised a report detailing a 20-year development strategy for its military aviation units according to a statement from the president, and supreme commander-in-chief, Volodymyr Zelenskyy on 3 August 2025.
The military will take new steps to empower all its aerial elements: combat aviation, anti-aircraft missile forces, and radio-technical forces.
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Ultimately, though, the wartime leader emphasised that “Our goal is the full and effective integration of the Air Force of Ukraine with Nato forces – something that will undoubtedly give Ukraine’s defense greater capabilities and, at the same time, make our country an even stronger part of Europe’s defense.”
What is new in this strategy?
The precise details of what Zelenskyy says may be Ukraine’s “de facto” inclusion within Nato forces are unclear.
One of the defining factors in the Russia-Ukraine conflict is that neither side has aerial supremacy which has led to brutal fighting on the ground as Russian forces slowly make gains along the frontline.
If Nato is amenable to Ukraine’s objectives then there will be questions around how far the alliance will contribute to the country’s aerial capabilities beyond the substantial commitments already made by Western partners.
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By GlobalDataHowever, the president confirmed that top level officials did outline new priorities: the integration of foreign equipment into the Defence Forces and for training personnel to operate these systems.
Ukraine’s combat air fleet
This is hardly new, however, since Western partners have provided platforms and equipment to Ukraine’s Air Force since Russia began its full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.
Foremost among these commitments was the creation of an F-16 capability coalition led by Denmark and the Netherlands. In the end, the coalition aim to build “a full-scale Ukrainian air force” based around the US-made fourth-generation multirole jet. As part of this endeavour, the UK delivered pilot training while, alongside the two coalition leaders, Belgium and Norway donated legacy aircraft, achieving initial operating capability in the summer of 2024.
The exact number of F-16 aircraft operating in Ukraine is unknown for security reasons, however the nation will likely benefit from more than 80 units.
Likewise, the French president Emmanuel Macron also committed to sending an undisclosed number of legacy Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets and a pledge to train 4,500 pilots over a period of six months, he predicted. This will have brought training to completion at the beginning of 2025.
The Air Force also operate various Soviet-era aircraft, including the MiG-29, Su-27, Su-25, and Su-24M, as well as modern uncrewed aerial systems like the Bayraktar TB2 and ACS-3.
A consistent Ukrainian requirement throughout the conflict has been an endless supply of missiles and interceptors. The Air Force accounts for various air and missile defence systems including the S-300, Patriot, NASAMS, Hawk, SAMP/T, and many others.
Meanwhile, there has been some unique contributions to strengthening Ukraine’s air and missile defence capabilities.
For example, the UK has reconfigured the Advanced Short Range Air-to-Air Missile (ASRAAM) to function as a surface-to-air missile. This has helped to create a more efficient model for missile consumption by exploiting all firepower capabilities in Ukrainian hands in the moment of need.
The UK has also designed two new short-range ground based air defence systems – Raven and Gravehawk – for Ukraine to deploy a variety of missiles, including the ground-launched ASRAAM as well as various Soviet-era missiles.
