President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed Ukraine’s Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk on Aug. 30.
The decision was announced on the Presidential Office’s official website.
Oleshchuk has served in the position since Aug. 9, 2021.
In his evening address, Zelensky thanked Ukrainian pilots, engineers, and soldiers of mobile firing groups and air defense units.
“(I thank) everyone who is really fighting for Ukraine — for the result. And it is also necessary at the command level. We must strengthen ourselves. And we must take care of people. Take care of the personnel. Take care of all our soldiers,” the president said without elaborating on the reason for the dismissal.
Oleshchuk’s dismissal came a day after the Ukrainian military confirmed that, the F-16 fighter jet, which had been recently delivered to the country and was being operated by Ukraine’s top pilot Oleksii Mes with the call sign “Moonfish,” had crashed while defending against a mass Russian drone and missile attack against the country on Aug. 26. Mes was killed in the crash.
Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said it had established a special commission to look into what caused the crash.
Oleshchuk said that Ukraine had “received a preliminary report” from the U.S., which he said “has already joined the investigation into the causes (of the crash).”
An unnamed U.S. defense official told Reuters that the crash “did not appear to be the result of Russian fire” and said that other causes, including “pilot error” and “mechanical failure,” were being investigated.
Oleshchuk pledged to get to the bottom of the crash, and said that “no one has hidden anything (or is) hiding anything (now).”
Lieutenant General Anatolii Kryvonozhko, commander of the “Center” Air Command, was appointed as Ukraine’s acting Air Force commander.
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The head of Ukraine’s state grid operator Ukrenergo, Volodymyr Kudrytskyi, may face dismissal “in the near future,” Economic Pravda reported on Aug. 30, citing unnamed government sources and energy company contacts.