**Ukraine's F-16 Missile Shortage So Bad Pilots Are Fighting With Just the Gun**

Ukraine's air-to-air missile shortage has gotten severe enough that on some daytime sorties, F-16 pilots go up with nothing but the jet's built-in cannon, according to The War Zone.

Ukrainian forces are rationing AIM-9 Sidewinder and AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles, reportedly tracking incoming shipments hour by hour to see if they'll arrive before the next major Russian strike.


> "Yes, it's true. Any aircraft without weapons is useless," said the commander of Ukraine's 107th Wing, callsign "Phantom."


He said the F-16s' top priority remains intercepting cruise missiles and jet-powered drones, and that Ukraine needs more AIM-9 and AIM-120 missiles, along with interceptors for its Patriot systems.

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