During a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on 21/7, US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Dan Caine stated that Ukraine's defense industry is making significant efforts to boost its capabilities, ranging from air defense to air-to-air combat.

"I would note that they recently shot down a target in air-to-air combat for the first time, specifically a Ukrainian F-16 shot down a Russian fighter jet", he said.

Caine during a hearing on Capitol Hill on 21/7. Photo: AP

The US official's statement suggests this marks the first time a Ukrainian F-16 has downed an enemy manned aircraft since entering the conflict in 8/2024. These fighter jets are typically used by Ukraine for air defense missions, specializing in intercepting unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and cruise missiles.

"I think their ability to expand their layered air defense network has progressed significantly over the years, thanks to assistance from partners", General Caine added.

Caine did not elaborate on the F-16's shootdown of the Russian fighter jet, but it likely refers to an incident on 8/7. At that time, the Ukrainian Air Command reported a Russian Su-35S fighter jet was downed on the eastern front, without disclosing the circumstances or weapons used.

Oleksii Zemtsov, a Russian military commentator, confirmed a Su-35S was shot down, adding that the pilot safely ejected and was evacuated to the rear.

Fighter Bomber, an account belonging to a Russian fighter pilot, described it as a "very interesting battle" where Ukraine deployed three F-16 fighter jets and one Patriot air defense system to counter a lone Su-35S.

At the time, it was unclear whether an F-16 or a Patriot system had downed the Russian aircraft. "Now we know that the F-16 delivered the killing blow, apparently using an AIM-120 radar-guided missile", said David Axe, military editor for Euromaidan Press.

According to the Fighter Bomber account, Ukrainian fighter jets formed a typical combat formation for ground target attacks: one aircraft approached the front line to drop glide bombs, with the two others providing support. The difference in the 8/7 engagement was that the first F-16 only simulated a glide bomb trajectory to draw fire from the Russian aircraft, and the formation was also supported by a Patriot system.

Ukraine reportedly deployed the Patriot system approximately 60 km from the front line, aiming to reach the patrol area of Russian fighter jets.

AMK Mapping, a social media account specializing in monitoring the Ukraine conflict, assessed at the time that the Patriot system fired simultaneously with the F-16 formation. This forced the Russian Su-35S fighter jet to confront a barrage of missiles launched from multiple directions, leading to it being hit.

A Ukrainian F-16 fighter jet in a photo posted in 11/2025. Photo: Ukrainian Air Force

Russia uses the Su-35S fighter jet for various missions, including air patrol, intercepting Ukrainian fighter jets, supporting allies, and suppressing enemy air defenses. The Kyiv Independent newspaper admitted that the Ukrainian military currently lacks effective countermeasures against the Su-35S, but suggested that the Gripen fighter jets Sweden is set to transfer would change this.

By Pham Giang (Based on Defence Blog, Ukrainska Pravda, RBC Ukraine)