Fallen pilot Oleksii Mes: defending Ukraine's right to have F-16s

Espreso TV will tell the story of the hero Oleksiy Mes (call sign Moonfish), who was posthumously honored with the rank of colonel.

The pilot is a native of Khmelnytskyi region

Little is known about Oleksii Mes's biography. He was born on October 20, 1993, in Shepetivka, Khmelnytskyi region.

As a child he served in the local church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary.  

He always dreamed of the skies. He studied at the Kharkiv National Air Force University named after Ivan Kozhedub.

Subsequently, he served under contract and was enlisted in the military unit as a squadron support commander, also holding the position of deputy commander of the operational group.

He was among the first to study in the United States on the F-16 program

Since the beginning of the full-scale war, Oleksii Mes has become one of those pilots who are called “media pilots.” In the summer of 2022, Oleksii visited the United States together with another well-known military pilot, Andrii Pilshchykov, call sign Juice, (died August 25, 2023), to meet with government officials and lobby for the provision of F-16 aircraft to Ukraine. Hollywood actor Sean Penn also joined Juice and Moonfish to strengthen their position.

After Mes and Pilshchykov met with Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger in Washington, D.C., he introduced the so-called Ukraine Fighter Pilots Act to the U.S. House of Representatives. This was the beginning of the official fight for Ukraine's right to use F-16s against the Russian aggressor. Only a year later, in the summer of 2023, NATO made a positive decision to transfer these fighters to Ukraine. Since then, pilot training has begun.

It was Moonfish who was one of the first Ukrainian pilots to go to the United States to learn how to fly an F-16 fighter jet. In the fall of 2023, his training moved from the simulator cockpit to a real F-16 aircraft.

“We know that when we arrive, we will be launching missiles”

He got his call sign Moonfish because of one of his curious incidents. He told about it on the air of a national telethon. On September 29, he gave an interview to ICTV host Yana Brenzey.

“The western approach is very much based on the fact that a person is motivated to learn. The Soviet school is a little different. It's designed to be 'we'll be studying, whether you want it or not'. Here, it's more about independence, your own initiative and motivation above all. I personally like this kind of training very much. And my fellow pilots like it too,” Oleksii said at the time.

He also explained to what extent the F-16 aircraft is more complex than the ones he had to fly:

“In terms of flying, in terms of general piloting techniques, the F-16 is very easy for a pilot. Especially for someone who already knows how to fly combat aircraft. The F-16 has a large 'gap' for correcting mistakes. You feel in the cockpit as if you are putting on a glove and merging with this aircraft. In this sense, the aircraft is wonderful and comfortable.  In terms of armament and avionics, of course, this is a slightly more complicated topic for us. Because we all [in Ukraine] use technologies from the last millennium, and here the aircraft is much more modernized... The longer you master the technology, the more professional you become in it. ... [in Ukraine] we won't have many, many years to further master and hone our skills, as our colleagues from other countries do. We know that we will arrive and will be dropping bombs, launching missiles, and doing everything we need to do right away. We are in a slightly different environment than the rest of them. And we have a slightly different motivation.”

Circumstances of death at the helm of an F-16

On the morning of August 26, Ukraine experienced a massive Russian attack. Then Russia launched 127 missiles of various types and 109 drones at the country. On that day, pilot Oleksii Mes destroyed three cruise missiles and one attack UAV while repelling the attack.

“He heroically fought his last battle in the sky. Oleksii saved Ukrainians from deadly Russian missiles. Unfortunately, at the cost of his own life. Oleksii Mes was a strong and devoted warrior, a highly skilled pilot, a leader on the ground and in the sky, a good friend, a loving son, father, husband, and patriot of his country,” the Western Air Command of the Ukrainian Air Force reported on August 29.

They added that by the order of the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Lieutenant Colonel Oleksii Mes was posthumously ranked colonel.

A source in the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense told Suspilne that Oleksii “Moonfish” Mes died piloting an F16 fighter jet. It is noted that the investigation into the cause of the crash is ongoing, but “it was not directly caused by a Russian strike.”

Representatives of the Ukrainian Air Force told VOA on condition of anonymity that they are considering various versions, including “friendly fire” from their air defense systems, a technical malfunction, and pilot error.

On Thursday, August 29, the Ukrainian General Staff confirmed that an F-16 fighter jet crashed while repelling a Russian missile attack, the pilot died.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff has officially confirmed that an F16 fighter jet crashed.

“A special commission of the Ministry of Defense has been appointed to investigate the causes of the accident and is working in the area where the plane crashed,” the General Staff added.

• On the night of August 25-26, Russia attacked Ukraine with missiles and drones. As a result of the prolonged massive attack, people were killed and injured in various regions. On August 26, Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting. According to him, Russia launched 127 missiles of various types and 109 drones at the territory of Ukraine.
• During the Ukraine 2024 Independence forum, President Zelenskyy said that the Ukrainian military, using F-16 fighter jets, had shot down some Russian missiles during the massive attack on August 26.
• On August 29, the Wall Street Journal reported that Ukraine's first F-16 fighter jet may have been downed on August 26.