The European F-16 Training Center has graduated its first pilots

We are talking about Romanian pilots who can now be immediately deployed to ensure the security of NATO airspace, writes dw.com.

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The European F-16 Pilot Training Center (EFTC) in Romania announced the first graduates, as reported by the Ministry of Defense of the Netherlands on Friday, July 26.

"These are Romanian pilots. They have been declared combat-ready and are now ready for operational deployment. The Netherlands played a key role in establishing the EFTC, contributing a total of 18 F-16s. Today, the pilots received their licenses," the message reads.

It is noted that during the training, the pilots "worked out various scenarios, for example, performing missions in the dark and training together with pilots from NATO member countries."

Training of Ukrainian pilots

The Minister of Defense of the Netherlands, Ruben Brekelmans, emphasized that the new pilots "strengthen our security and the defense capability of the Alliance." "NATO's strength lies in cooperation. The European F-16 Training Center is a great example of this. Together with Lockheed Martin and Romania, we work in the EFTC in a unique way. Successful Romanian pilots can now be immediately deployed to ensure the security of NATO airspace," he emphasized.

It is also reported that the next batch of Romanian pilots has already started training, and in time "the training of Ukrainian servicemen as F-16 pilots will begin." "I look forward to the time when the first Ukrainian pilots will be trained here. "Ukraine is in dire need of strengthening its anti-aircraft defense," Breckelmans added.

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