Lithuania to donate surplus L-39ZA to Ukraine

Lithuania is donating an L-39ZA Albatross trainer/light attack aircraft to Ukraine.

Lithuania is donating its sole remaining L-39ZA Albatross aircraft to Ukraine ‘on a non-reimbursable basis to advance its objectives and functions’, the government of the Baltic republic announced on 10 November.

The aircraft will be delivered ‘within a short while, as soon as practical details are settled with the Ukrainian side’, the Lithuanian government added in an official statement.

The L-39ZA is a lead-in fighter trainer that doubles as a light attack aircraft. The Albatross destined for Ukraine is one of a pair that underwent an avionics and navigation equipment overhaul in Romania in 2007.