Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of Tranche 1 Typhoon jets being repurposed for deployment in Ukraine.

The Ministry of Defence has assessed the relative merits and downsides of donating Typhoon Tranche 1 jets to Ukraine multiple times. In August 2023, Denmark and the Netherlands announced they would donate up to 61 F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, which is significantly greater than the number of Tranche 1 Typhoons in RAF service.

As a result, and following detailed conversations with the Ukrainian Government, the UK has decided to focus on supporting the donation of European F-16s to Ukraine, by providing elementary flying training and English language training for technicians and pilots that will then operate F-16s.

24 Ukrainian pilots have graduated from intensive Fast Jet Lead-in training under the guidance of Royal Air Force instructors.

I attended the graduation of Ukrainian pilots trained by the UK last year and can tell the right hon. Member we should be very proud of our role training them, and proud of the brave individuals we train for supporting their freedom.