Ukraine to Get Advanced Czech Trainer Jet to Fight Russian Drones

The Czech Republic is likely to transfer 16 combat aircraft to Ukraine to help counter Russian drones, news reports in Ukraine and Czechia said on Thursday. Czech Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry and Trade Karel Havlíček in comments to reporters in Kyiv said that his government had already agreed that four L-39 Skyfox aircraft would be transferred to Ukraine while a “preliminary agreement” is in place for another 12.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. Ukraine wants the aircraft to buttress its national air defenses against Russian attacks, he said. “I have a very good feeling about the meeting. The [Ukrainian Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi] also brought Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal and Transport Minister Mykola Kalashnyk to the meeting,” Havlíček said, as quoted by České noviny. The Aero L-39 Skyfox (also known as the L-39NG) is a modern two-seat advanced jet trainer with modern digital avionics, advanced controls and a strengthened airframe. In its base configuration, the aircraft is commonly used as an advanced trainer for military pilots transitioning to fighters or attack jets. Aero Vodochody, headquartered in Odolena Voda, Czech Republic, according to company reports, has sold and delivered L-39 aircraft to the Czech Air Force, Vietnam and Hungary, and is currently filling orders from Serbia and Armenia. News reports put the price of an L-39 at between $10 million and 20 million, depending on equipment.Aero Vodochody produces 12 L-39 Skyfox jet trainers per year with reported potential surge production capacity at 18 aircraft. According to corporate statements, Aero has sold more than 40 of the trainers so far and, per that data, production is busy with orders until the second quarter of 2027. Other Topics of Interest Ukraine Strikes Omsk Oil Refinery for Third Time, SSO Says The Omsk refinery was hit in July and October; after the first strike, the SSO said it halted processing for repairs. Aero is also developing an anti-drone version of the L-39 called Drone Hunter, which, per the Ekonomický deník, could apparently be heading to Ukraine. Aero has displayed a prototype of the aircraft with an electro-optical targeting system and rocket pods for 70mm guided missiles, a relatively cheap weapon suited to intercepting drones and similar slow-flying, non-maneuvering aircraft. A Drone Hunter configuration presented by Aero at a NATO event in September 2026 was an aircraft armed with two seven-shot missile pods, a total of 14 missiles, and a Phoenix 10 targeting container. Advertising materials have shown the aircraft equipped with both missile racks and a pair of .50 caliber machine gun pods.Reportedly, Aero is working with Thales Belgium, the Belgian arm of the French defense group, on integration and testing of the Drone Hunter configuration, and testing on the set-up is still in progress. If and when functional Skyfox could hit drones moving at a speed of 150 to 600 kph (93 to 373 mph) at altitudes of up to 8,000 meters (26,247 feet), the article said. Ukraine, in its four years+ battles against daily Russian missile and drone strikes, has employed a complex air defense network combining advanced fighter jets, ground attack helicopters repurposed to air defense duty, machine gun and shoulder-fired missile teams on pickup trucks, and a mix of modern and Cold War-era anti-aircraft missiles and automatic cannon systems donated by Western allies to defend its skies. In late 2025 and 2026, as Russian drone numbers have increased, Ukrainian air defenders developed home-made interceptor drones and occasionally even used crop-duster aircraft with a shotgunner in the rear seat to defend their skies. Overnight on Nov. 11-12, as Havlíček and the Czech delegation were travelling to Ukraine, Russia launched ballistic missiles, anti-ship missiles and a reported 123 attack drones at targets across Ukraine. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, air defenses shot down or otherwise rendered mission-incapable 94 air targets, among which were five mini-cruise missiles, 51 jet-powered Shahed drones and 48 propeller-powered Shahed drones.Strikes were recorded at 17 locations, and 10 civilians were killed and 40 injured across the country in the strikes, local authorities said. Beyond aircraft, Havlíček discussed with the head of the military administration of the Lviv region, Maksym Kozytskyi, possible expansion of gas extraction by Czech companies in Ukraine and the possible involvement of Czech companies in construction work and technological supplies for the Lviv hospital. During the planned two-day visit to Ukraine, Havlíček is scheduled to visit two Lviv region cities to meet with local officials and business leaders, and speak at two business forums. According to the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade figures, in 2025 Czech exporters sold goods and services worth about $2.9 billion to Ukraine, while Ukraine exported goods worth $1.78 billion to the Czech Republic. Czechia’s main exports to Ukraine are finished goods such as electronics, vehicles, machinery and processed fuels. Ukraine’s main exports to Czechia are mostly commodities or semi-processed goods such as oilseeds, sugar, vegetable and animal fats, wood and wood products, and iron, steel and titanium. Stefan Korshak is the Kyiv Post Senior Defense Correspondent. He is from Houston Texas, is a Yalie and since the mid-1990s has worked as correspondent/photographer for newswire, newspapers, television and radio. He has reported from five wars but most enjoys doing articles on wildlife and nature. You can read his weekly blog on the Russo-Ukraine War on Facebook, Substack and Medium. His new book on the 2022 Siege of Mariupol is available on Amazon UK and Amazon US.