Ukrainian star pilot killed in country's first loss of US-made F-16 jet

Ukraine has appointed a special commission to investigate its first confirmed loss of an F-16 fighter jet, which came from the west. The plane went down during a massive Russian aerial attack Monday. Ukraine source says pilot error is not believed to be behind the crash, but has seen its share price and reports the loss of that particular pilot. It's a major blow for Kiev. Ukraine called it the largest Russian aerial barrage to date. Moscow's troops launching hundreds of drones and missiles on Monday. Ukraine using U.S. made F-16 jets to help repel the attack. Now Kiev, acknowledging one of the F-16s crashed, killing one of Ukraine's top fighter aces. Alexei Mir, known by his callsign Moon Fish. Ukraine's general Command saying, quote, during the approach to the next targeted communication with one of the aircraft was lost. As it turned out later, the plane crashed. The pilot died. Fewer Ukrainian fighter pilots were more instrumental in lobbying partners to give Ukraine the F-16. Then moon fish. This war, does not appear to end soon. If West will provide us with some additional jets with some additional Sams. And we are, we're really looking forward to it. We I think we will be able to control our sky for for for a while. Bonefish was one of the first Ukrainian pilots instructed on the F-16, around six months of training that normally take years. It is really super fun jet to fly. I'm not saying that MiG that I flew before is super boring, but the F-16 is definitely more agile. It easily moves in the moment you think of something, it returns. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky had been asking Western allies for the F-16 since the start of Russia's full scale invasion, warning that Ukraine's air force was becoming more and more depleted and that its old Soviet era planes couldn't match up against Russia's newer aircraft. Finally, last year, several European countries agreed to donate the jets with the green light from the US as the manufacturing country. Moon fish and another pilot known by the callsign juice, became the faces of the campaign to get the F-16s to Ukraine's skies. Juice was killed in a plane crash just over a year ago before ever flying the jets. On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the Ukrainian Air Force used the F-16 to destroy missiles and drones launched by Russia on Monday, the first time any Ukrainian official confirmed the jets were being used in combat. We destroyed it already. Some missiles and drones using F-16. I will not share how many, but we did it. One of the few pilots trained to fly the jets. Moon fish death is a major blow for Ukraine as Kiev throws everything it has trying to turn the tide in this war. We are a comparatively small air force and we know each other by names. And of course we know well all all our, all our fallen friends from Pleitgen, CNN, Michelle Poland. Fighting is now within earshot of the Ukrainian city of Pok Rosc. CNN crews went to the city this week and say the gunfire could be heard from the city center. Ukraine's army chief says the fighting is extremely fierce, with Russians throwing everything they can to advance. He says battles are underway as close as 12km from Petrovsky. But Russia advanced as Russia advances on the ground. It's also taking damage at home from Ukraine's aerial strikes. A key says it struck an oil depot in the Ross Gulf region of Russia on Wednesday. That caused a massive fire. As you can see, Ukraine says it also targets an oil facility in the Kirov region east of Moscow. For the first time, Russia says there was no damage or casualties in that strike. Now, later today, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will meet with his Ukrainian counterpart at the Pentagon. Salma is here with a preview of that. I mean, this is feels like the Ukrainians at least see this as a potential turning point. This set of meetings may potentially allow them to do more. Absolutely. And you should have just outlined Ukraine's strategy by reading those headlines. The hitting of oil depots. That is what Ukraine's military is focused on, hitting Russia on Russian territory, on their most important sites that feed Moscow's war machine. And what Ukraine's defense minister, who's meeting today with the secretary of defense in D.C.. The argument he's going to make is we need to continue this, and we need to do it deeper into the heart of Russia, using the long range missiles that NATO and the US have provided. Now, U.S. officials will say, look, we're worried that this could provoke Putin further. We're worried that this could escalate tensions. We are concerned as to whether or not this is a good gamble. And I think what the defense minister will point to is Kursk. He's going to say, look, we are not only just inside Russian territory. We have been fighting in it for weeks. We have claimed Russian land. And guess what? That big beast of Putin has yet to be so angry. As for these threats to materialize. So let's keep pushing Russia. Let's keep pushing on those red lines. But they absolutely have their work cut out for them in convincing U.S. officials, the Ukrainian defense minister is going to come with a list of priority list of targets and say, these are the places we want to hit. And he is absolutely going to have to persuade U.S. officials that that's the path forward. So that's the story about Ukraine going into Russia. What about the, you know, the Russian front line into Ukraine and what's happening around Polk? And that's what's important here is this mixed battlefield picture. Yes, we have Ukrainian troops advancing on Russian territory, but at the same time you have Russian troops deep in Ukraine. They look very much on the edge of claiming Rusk in order for Ukraine to invest in that Kursk offensive, it appears to have had to basically soften its lines in other places, making it ever more vulnerable. This is a gamble, make no doubt about it. This is a gamble by President Zelensky, who is saying, I am going to push into Russian territory, even while vulnerable to this Russian advance, in the hopes that that's what's going to weaken the war machine and ultimately give me the victory that I need. What do you think the Russian strategy is here? Is it? Let's keep going into Ukraine and deal with Kursk later. I think the Russian strategy is fundamentally don't play Zelensky's game right. If Zelensky is pushing into Kursk, if Zelensky is trying to distract Russian troops, if Zelenskyy's trying to pull you away from the dumbass, don't do that. Don't do that. Continue. Push ahead. Progress is strategically important. You have to remember that it is a essentially logistical hub for Ukrainian forces. In that part, if Moscow is able to take power beyond that, it's almost open space. They could start barreling on through in the dumbass. It is important, but Russia is going to continue to insist on pushing through the dumbass and maybe putting Kursk to one side and saying, let's deal with that later. Let's not take the bait, if you will. Okay, Simon, thank you so much.