Dreams of F-16: how love of Top Gun inspired Juice to defend Ukraine's skies

"Together for peace and victory"

The "Ghost of Kyiv" has become a symbol of Ukrainian resilience. It is a collective image of the pilots of the 40th Brigade, where Juice served.

"Why did fighter aviation become famous in the first days of the war? There was no specific front line, no clearly defined Russian air defense, and there was a certain chaos in the Russians' actions. This allowed us to feel freer," Juice shared his thoughts with hromadske.

The pilot noted that before February 24, it was hard to imagine that in the 21st century there would be a place for such close combat in the sky. Some of the clashes lwere reminiscent of footage from “Top Gun: Maverick", a movie Juice admired. Although he noted that there were unrealistic moments in the movie.

Toward the end of the spring of 2022, according to Juice, the air front line stabilized. Then the superiority of Russian aircraft over Ukrainian ones began to be felt critically. The enemy's higher-level technology — radars and missiles with a significantly longer range — made Ukrainian pilots vulnerable.

"The best option with our weapons is to simply stay out of the air. [We lack the means to effectively counteract the enemy's air power], and they are already holding you at gunpoint." 

In order to stop the Russian invasion, Juice became one of the pilots who advocated for the supply of the latest equipment to Ukraine.

Maria Kurinna, an expert at the ZMINA Center, who met the pilot in the summer of 2022 in Poland, recalls her experience of spending time with him.

"I was lucky enough to live with him for 5 days in Warsaw under the same roof while Andriy and other officers from the Air Force were waiting for a visa to the United States. He dreamed of flying since childhood. This man lived by aviation. At the same time, he was very positive and shy. When I asked him if he was involved with the ‘Ghost of Kyiv’, Andriy lowered his head and said: ‘For the first five days, I was performing other tasks, but later I was indeed. However, this is a whole team of pilots’." 

Maria asked Andriy to write something on the flyleaf of his notebook as a memento. It was engraved in black in on white background: "Together for peace and victory".

The dream of piloting an F-16

Juice did fly to the United States, where, according to AntAC Executive Director Daria Kaleniuk, Andriy approached all key U.S. congressmen and leading American media with requests to provide aircraft and start training Ukrainians on F-16s.

"I'm sure there is no other pilot in Ukraine who has done more than Andriy for the F-16 advocacy campaign. He should have shortly been in Arizona at the best U.S. base where F-16 pilots are trained," Kaleniuk said.

In her opinion, the first squadron of American aircraft in Ukraine should be named in honor of Captain Andriy Pilshchykov.

Speaking with hromadske, Juice emphasized that one of the main tasks of fighter aircraft is to protect Ukrainian cities and critical infrastructure. Modern planes instead of Soviet ones would strengthen the state air defense system and this would better protect Ukrainians from enemy cruise missiles and drones.

"Ukraine is the largest country in Europe. The territory is huge. It is simply impossible to cover it with a purely ground-based air defense component - missile forces. Any air defense system has a limited range. That is why we need this defense function. If we lose the infrastructure in peaceful areas, the country will be bled dry," the pilot said.

He did not forget about the air war. According to him, the F-16s in Ukraine will enable Ukraine to fight the Russians in the sky on equal terms, or even with an advantage.

"A more modern radar will allow me to see the enemy earlier, allow me to plan the battle according to my rules. Because the first to see is the one who ‘starts the game’. And using more modern missiles, which do not require ‘following’ the target in the sights until it is hit, I can hit the enemy aircraft and still stay safe."

Juice's dream of mastering this combat platform never came true.

The need for air defense

Aircraft were not the only topic Juice promoted during his meetings with U.S. lawmakers and Pentagon experts. Air defense systems, such as the well-known SAMP-T, NASAMS, and others, were also on the agenda.

Andriy talked a lot about the American Avenger air defense system, which the Ukrainian military received in the spring of 2023.

"We've been trying to get it for a long time. This equipment is effective against Shahed drones due to its mobility and machine gun. Moreover, the Americans have a lot of them, so they can saturate our defense system," said Juice.

In fact, the need for the Avenger was also related to the pilot's work. His task was often to intercept and destroy Shahed UAVs. However, as Andriy noted, Iranian drones are a difficult target for Ukrainian MiG-29s: they fly low, so radars cannot detect them.

"Guardian of the sky"

According to Juice, one factor enabling the Ukrainian Air Force to withstand its more numerous adversary has been creativity and flexibility in tactical approaches.

"We have much fewer suicide missions set compared to the Russians. What brings us closer to Western air forces is risk assessment. If the risks exceed the effect of the likely result, such tasks are not performed. Or other methods are sought, other approaches to how these tasks can be accomplished. In other words, we try to spare people."

Despite this approach to task planning by the command, Juice could not avert the tragedy in Zhytomyr Oblast. The pilot was killed along with two fellow majors, Vyacheslav Minka and Serhiy Prokazin.

Vyacheslav lived in Kyiv Oblast and returned to aviation in 2015, after Russia attacked Ukraine. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, he had over 200 hours of flight time. He was an experienced pilot in the brigade, and devoted a significant part of his service to instructing.

Serhiy lived in Poltava Oblast. He devoted 24 years of his life to aviation: from pilot to deputy brigade commander. Since 2022, he has logged more than 100 hours of combat flight time. His comrades-in-arms recall his extraordinary sincerity and ability to help in difficult situations.

The causes of the crash are currently being established by the State Bureau of Investigation.

"Rest in peace, Juice. Now you are literally holding our sky," social media users wrote.