Bulgaria receives first US F-16 fighter jet

GRAF IGNATIEVO, Bulgaria: Bulgaria on Sunday welcomed its first US-made F-16 fighter jet ordered as part of the eastern-flank Nato member´s landmark efforts to modernise its air force.

To replace its Soviet-era MiG-29 jets, Bulgaria has ordered 16 American F-16s for a cost of around 2.4 billion euros ($2.7 billion), in the largest contract to overhaul its armed forces since the fall of communism in 1989.

At a ceremony marking the jet´s delivery at the Graf Ignatievo military base in central Bulgaria, Prime Minister Rossen Jeliazkov said those in attendance were celebrating “the inexorable and irreversible modernisation of the Bulgarian army. US defence official David Baker hailed the jet´s delivery as a “significant milestone”.

“Your investments today will improve Bulgaria´s security for decades to come and enable you to further contribute to making Nato the greatest military alliance in history,” Baker added. After the first delivery on Sunday, seven more F-16s are due to be delivered by the end of 2025, with the remaining eight to arrive by 2027.

Bulgaria, which last year celebrated the 20th anniversary of its entry into Nato, has for a long time delayed the modernisation of its air force for political and financial reasons. But as with other eastern members of the US-led defence alliance Russia´s invasion of Ukraine has forced a rethink of its defence posture.