An image shared on X claims to show a Ukrainian F-16 over Lviv, Ukraine.

F-16 over Lviv you say? 👀#Lviv #Львів pic.twitter.com/bOZTUM9S4x

— Richard Woodruff 🇺🇦 (@frontlinekit) August 1, 2024

Verdict: False

The image is photoshopped, according to multiple sources.

Fact Check:

Ukraine has received its first batch of F-16 fighter jets in recent days, according to Defense News. Ukraine is set to receive 20 of these jets by the end of the year, the outlet reported.

Social media users have been sharing an image of a jet aircraft in the sky, claiming it shows an F-16 in Lviv. One user wrote, “F-16 over Lviv you say?”

This image is photoshopped. It appears that the image was first created as a prank, according to a Telegram channel that first spread the images.

“Okay, I confess… These are photos taken and photoshopped by me back in October 2022, which, by coincidence, hit the Internet just now, and bought me a pack of dumplings,” the translated Telegram post reads. 

Special Kherson Cat, an account that often shares videos and images from the Russian invasion of Ukraine (and has been cited by experts such as Foreign Policy Research Institute senior fellow Rob Lee), debunked the claim in an August 1 tweet.

“Regarding the ‘F-16s over Lviv’. It so happened that I know the story behind these images through my personal connections. These images were made back in October 2022. F-16s were artificially added to the photos of Lviv to try to mislead the administration of one telegram channel as a joke. And the photos remained waiting for the last two years until the creator decided to publish them. The person responsible for creating these photos is now the administrator of this telegram channel,” Special Kherson Cat tweeted.

“No F-16s were flying over Lviv,” reads the tweet. (RELATED: Was The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Struck by Houthi Rebels?)