A Russian oil company said it had given a total of 15 million rubles (about $ 195,000) to Russian soldiers which he attributed to have reduced the first F-16 fighter plane made in the United States in Ukraine.
In a press release, Fores, a manufacturer of fracturing, said that he had presented 12 money soldiers at a ceremony near the Russia-Ukraine border on Thursday.
“The Fores have completed its previous promise and paid 15 million rubles to the Russian soldiers for destroying the first F-16 fighter plane in the special operating area,” said the company.
The company announced the premium system in 2023, promising cash rewards for soldiers who destroyed certain military equipment provided by the West.
The company said it had so far paid just over 52 million rubles (around $ 670,000) for the destruction of the F-16 and an unpertured number of Leopard 2 and Abrams tanks.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had long coveted the F-16 when he sought to strengthen the air defenses of Ukraine, and kyiv obtained his first delivery of the jet in the summer of 2024.
The forces of Ukraine have so far lost at least three F-16 in combat, the general staff confirming the first defeat in August of last year.
The F-16 has nevertheless proven success on the battlefield.
General Christopher G. Cavoli, the best American general in Europe, told a senatorial committee of armed services in April that the F-16 stolen “every day” in Ukraine and that they had succeeded in air defense and offensive operations.
“They have defeated a large number of threats of cruise missiles, and they also launched many offensive attacks,” he said, adding: “More specifically, bombing attacks in the East.”