The new F-16 fighters will strengthen Bulgaria’s defense and deepen his partnership with the United States.
At the Bulgarian air base, the Ignatievo Graf was landed on Wednesday the first of the 16 new F-16 fighters purchased in the United States. According to the AP report, TASR reports this.
The contract for the purchase of eight multipurpose F-16 Block 70 fighters for a total of $ 1.3 billion was concluded by Bulgaria with the US party in the summer of 2019.
Meanwhile, in 2022, the Bulgarian government signed a contract with the American company Lockheed Martin to buy another eight F-16 fighters by the end of 2027.
“It is not just a fighter, but a symbol and embodiment of the strategic partnership of Bulgaria with the United States …, a partnership that offers a new perspective for the Bulgarian army,” Prime Minister Rosen Rosen said after the arrival of the fighters.
This Balkan country, which joined NATO in 2004, has been trying to modernize its squadron of outdated MiG-29 Soviet production fighters for the last two decades, but financial problems have forced repeated delay of this effort. According to AP, new fighter aircraft needs to improve its defense and align its Air Force with NATO standards.
During the war in Ukraine, which Russia had arisen militarily more than three years ago, Bulgaria relies on help from other NATO Member States in fulfilling its airspace protection obligations.
