Bulgaria's first F-16 has landed at the third fighter air Base in Graf Ignatievo, marking a significant milestone in a transformative upgrade in Bulgaria’s aerial warfare capabilities and replace the ageing fleet of Russian-made combat aircrafts
Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov hailed the arrival of the first jet at the Graf Ignatievo air base in central Bulgaria.
“This is not just a fighter jet, but a symbol and embodiment of Bulgaria’s strategic partnership with the United States … a partnership that offers a new perspective for the Bulgarian Army,” the prime minister said.
The F-16 had departed the Lockheed Martin assembly facility in Greenville, South Carolina, on March 31.En route, a Tennessee State Air National Guard KC-135 tanker provided aerial refueling, with representatives from the Tennessee National Guard—Bulgaria's counterpart in the State Partnership Program—on board the tanker.
The F-16 Block 70 aircraft is the most advanced F-16 ever produced, featuring advanced, industry-leading radar technology, cutting edge avionics, and the most modern safety equipment. Of the 28 nations that operate the F-16, including 11 NATO Allies, Bulgaria is one of only four whose fleets will include this latest-generation variant.
The F-16 will facilitate full interoperability with NATO air policing operations and offers multi-mission capability to the Bulgarian Air Force as it undertakes its role of defending the nation’s territory and citizens.
Bulgaria will receive additional deliveries throughout the year.
Bulgaria contracted to buy eight multi-role F-16 Block 70 aircraft in July 2019 for $1.3 billion. Plans initially called for the first planes to arrive in Bulgaria in 2023, but the coronavirus pandemic delayed their delivery.
In 2022, the Bulgarian government signed a contract with American aerospace company Lockheed Martin for a second batch of another eight of the F-16 fighter jets by the end of 2027.
As part of the U.S. government’s commitment to ensuring Bulgaria’s successful deployment of the aircraft, the U.S. Air Force will provide intensive training services over multiple years to assist the Bulgarian Air Force F-16 pilot, maintenance, and handling crews develop their mastery of the advanced fighter. U.S. Air Force specialists from the 31st Fighter Wing in Aviano, Italy, will also maintain regular contact with their Bulgarian counterparts to ensure the Bulgarian Air Force is equipped to optimize the aircraft’s performance.
The "Azerbaijani Cartographers" Public Union has prepared a map of the Zangezur corridor based on high-quality satellite images, showing detailed geog...
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revoked the citizenship of Odesa mayor Hennadiy Trukhanov on Tuesday, which Ukraine's security service said wa...
Tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan are showing no signs of waning after a weekend of clashes on the volatile Afghan border between the security...
The International Committee of the Red Cross has said that it may take a considerable amount of time to hand over remains of hostages who died in Hama...
Elina Valtonen, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Finland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, welcomed the joint decision by Azerbaijan and Armenia to diss...
Bulgarian authorities have detained Igor Grechushkin, the Russian owner of a cargo ship linked to the ammonium nitrate at the heart of the 2020 Beirut port explosion, Lebanese judicial officials said.
Belgium has approved the transfer of four decommissioned minehunters to Bulgaria under a contract worth €24 million (over $28 million).
The EU has accused Russia of jamming the GPS signal on an aircraft carrying the European commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday.
Bulgaria reported outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza on three farms in the southern part of the country, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) said on Monday, as Europe faces a seasonal upturn in the deadly disease.
Video from the USGS (United States Geological Survey) showed on Friday (19 September) the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii erupting and spewing lava.
At least 69 people have died and almost 150 injured following a powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Cebu City in the central Visayas region of the Philippines, officials said, making it one of the country’s deadliest disasters this year.
Authorities in California have identified the dismembered body discovered in a Tesla registered to singer D4vd as 15-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, who had been missing from Lake Elsinore since April 2024.
A tsunami threat was issued in Chile after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck the Drake Passage on Friday. The epicenter was located 135 miles south of Puerto Williams on the north coast of Navarino Island.
The war in Ukraine has reached a strategic impasse, and it seems that the conflict will not be solved by military means. This creates a path toward one of two alternatives: either a “frozen” phase that can last indefinitely or a quest for a durable political regulation.
The "Azerbaijani Cartographers" Public Union has prepared a map of the Zangezur corridor based on high-quality satellite images, showing detailed geographic features across Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Iran.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revoked the citizenship of Odesa mayor Hennadiy Trukhanov on Tuesday, which Ukraine's security service said was due to Trukhanov also being a Russian citizen.
Tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan are showing no signs of waning after a weekend of clashes on the volatile Afghan border between the security forces of the two countries.
The International Committee of the Red Cross has said that it may take a considerable amount of time to hand over remains of hostages who died in Hamas detention given the difficulties of finding bodies in Gaza's rubble.
Israel's military said it opened fire on Tuesday to remove a threat posed by suspects who approached its forces in the northern Gaza Strip, and health authorities in Gaza said at least six Palestinians had been killed by Israeli fire.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment