The bravery of the airmen, and the power of the aircraft, are showcased on Mint XXI’s latest Guardians of Freedom coin

Guardians of Freedom, Mint XXI’s showcasing of the bravery and abilities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, continues with a third issue. Following ‘Army of Drones’, and ‘Special Operations Forces’, this time we’re back in the skies with ‘Air Force’. The invasion of Ukraine was unusual, in that the expected attainment of air superiority by the numerically larger Russian air forces, did not happen. A mix of high and low altitude air defence systems, have kept flights over Ukraine relatively low, but it seems Ukraine’s air force has found a new lease of life with US-made F-16 multirole fighters, a very capable platform, and Western munitions.

The design here is really first-class, in my view, with a brilliant use of colour, especially in the pilot’s visor reflection of the cockpit. A pair of fighters accompany the main subject, which seem loosely based on the F-16, but I don’t think specifics were the idea here, as they’re clearly evoking the abilities, and positivity, of these airmen, above technical accuracy. Whatever the case, we really like the design of this one, emphasising their professionalism over a gung-ho approach.

The obverse is one common to this series, and cleverly integrates a pair of AK-M assault rifles into Ukraine’s traditional national symbol, the trident. It’s dripping with military symbolism. This two-ounce silver coin is presented in a latex-skin ‘floating’ frame for easy display, and has a mintage capped at 1,000 units. Available now. As an aside, we’re hoping next week to get some of our own images of the F-16 coin that Mint XXI released last year, so keep an eye out for that.