Yes, we realize the Ghost of Kyiv was an urban legend. That doesn't mean that every fighter pilot still in the air for the Ukrainian military isn't the actual Ghost of Kyiv.

For the record, the fighter pilots from the Ukrainian Air Force are now the most experienced air-to-air combat pilots on planet Earth. There is not a single person, tall tale, urban legend, or idiotic Reddit comment that can take that away from them. Prior to the Russian invasion, the Ukrainian pilots trained simulated air-to-air combat operations against American pilots where they learned a lot from their American counter-parts. Today, if the war ended right now, and that training were to recommence, the American pilots would be the students because the Ukrainian pilots are far more experienced in the subject matter.

If you want to follow a member of the Ukrainian Air Force who is dropping some of the best TikTok content on the planet right now, go check out the @ from the watermark in the video above. You'll get an eyeful of what air-to-air and air-to-ground combat looks like when the pilot is maneuvering at mach-Jesus about 500 feet off the deck. Keep in mind, he's flying circles around the Russians with only one hand on the stick, because he's gotta drop TikTok videos for the boys too.