Nobody Knows When the New F-16s Will Be Combat Ready
The Minister of Defense told journalists that the second batch of eight F-16 fighters is expected before 2030, and the Air Force Commander announced that there will be 11 trained pilots for the F-16 by the end of the year.
Source: Mediаpool
The military does not know when they will be able to start combat duty with the newly acquired F-16 Block 70 fighters.
This became clear from the statements of the Minister of Defense Dimitar Stoyanov and the Commander of the Air Force (VVS) Gen. Nikolay Rusev on Friday, the day celebrating military aviation.
The Minister of Defense told journalists that the second batch of eight F-16 fighters is expected before 2030, and the Air Force Commander announced that there will be 11 trained pilots for the F-16 by the end of the year.
Bulgaria purchased a total of 16 F-16 Block 70 fighters for over $2.5 billion, with the first eight aircraft already in Bulgaria. The next eight were supposed to be delivered in 2027, but there is a significant delay.
For the Air Force to be able to perform combat duty with the F-16s, they must master them completely, which in the best case takes about 2-3 years. However, Bulgaria currently has no clarity on when this will be possible.
Therefore, the Air Force continues to rely solely on Soviet-made MiG-29 fighters for the protection of Bulgarian airspace, whose maintenance is extremely difficult and depends solely on Poland.
"When it is 100% equipped, it will enter combat duty. Currently, this has not been done, it does not depend on us, but we are preparing, and when the aircraft is ready, the pilots will immediately enter combat duty," said the Air Force Commander.
Last month, the Bulgarian Air Force announced that the new F-16 fighters are still without a self-defense and warning system. It is expected that it will be installed next year, but these deadlines are not always met.
Bulgaria still does not have enough trained pilots for the aircraft.
It is expected that there will be 11 trained F-16 fighter pilots by the end of the year, and 15 by April 2027.
"Pilot training is proceeding at the pace we expect. They are flying, actively participating in exercises held in Bulgaria. They are also participating in the current situation by collecting information from the air, I cannot provide more details, but the F-16 is being used to its full potential," said Major General Rusev.
He said that the MiG-29 fighters will fly as long as they have a resource.
"I expect the MiG-29s to fly until they are replaced by a second squadron of fighters or until their resource is exhausted in 2030. We are in constant contact with Poland, the Poles are helping us in every way, they are our only source of spare parts and repairs for the MiG-29 aircraft," explained Major General Nikolay Rusev.
He noted that the Poles still maintain their MiG-29 fighters and use them, and not everything has been given to Ukraine.
The Minister of Defense and the Air Force, however, insist that another squadron be purchased in addition to the new F-16s. For this purpose, second-hand aircraft are being sought. Options are again F-16, but also Swedish "Gripen".
