On Friday, January 31, 2025, a formal handover ceremony took place at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. (a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin) in Greenville, South Carolina, where the first F-16D Block 70 multirole aircraft was officially delivered to the Bulgarian Ministry of Defense, out of a total of 16 ordered.
Photos: Bulgarian Ministry of Defense
“We are witnessing a historic event of key importance for the development of the Bulgarian Armed Forces. We are beginning the renewal of our Air Force’s combat capabilities and the creation of new military capabilities, ensuring full interoperability with our NATO and EU allies,” the Bulgarian Ministry of Defense stated in a press release on social media.
The Bulgarian delegation was led by Minister of Defense, Gen. (Ret.) Atanas Zapryanov, accompanied by members of the ministry and representatives of the Bulgarian Air Force (Voennovazdushni sili, VVS). The ceremony was also attended by Lockheed Martin executives, members of the U.S. Congress and Senate, as well as state authorities.
It was announced that the twin-seat aircraft will be relocated to Bulgaria in April this year, while three more units will be completed by the end of March. Earlier, on October 23, 2024, the first Bulgarian single-seat F-16C Block 70 completed its maiden flight and is also scheduled to arrive in the country this spring. Ultimately, a total of 32 pilots and over 100 technical personnel will undergo training in the United States.
“Thanks to this, our strategic defense partnership with the United States continues its upward development,” emphasized Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov. “With the acquisition of F-16 Block 70 multirole fighters, capable of carrying out a wide range of missions, our combat aviation will develop new capabilities, enabling the Air Force to achieve full interoperability with NATO and EU allies.“
On January 16, 2024, the Greenville facility was visited by then-Minister of Defense Todor Tagarev, Bulgarian Ambassador to the U.S. Georgi Panayotov, and Chief of Defense Admiral Emil Eftimov. They were informed that the assembly of seven aircraft was underway. Earlier, on November 11, 2023, the Bulgarian Ministry of Defense presented the first, yet unfinished unit, which had completed its maiden flight in October of the previous year.
Bulgaria ordered 16 F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft, with the first eight purchased in 2019 and the remaining eight in 2022, in the latest production variant for $1.256 billion. However, delays were expected, and according to a statement on February 17, 2022, the first deliveries were projected to begin no earlier than 2024—though this initially referred to a symbolic handover in the U.S., where Bulgarian personnel are being trained, rather than an actual transfer to Bulgaria (editor’s note). The delays were primarily caused by supply chain disruptions affecting Lockheed Martin’s subcontractors, resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally, deliveries were planned to be completed between 2023 and 2027.
The Bulgarian Air Force currently operates 11 MiG-29A/UB fighter aircraft, all stationed at the 3rd Fighter Air Base in Graf Ignatievo. This fleet has been steadily shrinking (in 2021, there were still 14 aircraft in service), suffers from low operational readiness (only 5–7 were reportedly airworthy at that time), and lost one aircraft in a crash on June 9, 2021. As a result, the Bulgarian government refused to transfer these aircraft to Ukraine without equipment support from its allies.
Originally, between 1989 and 1990, the Soviet Union delivered 22 MiG-29s to Bulgaria, including 18 single-seat MiG-29A (izdeliye 9.12A) and 4 two-seat MiG-29UB (izdeliye 9.51) aircraft. On September 29, 1994, a MiG-29A (tactical number 25) crashed, killing the commander of Ravnec Air Base, Major Ivan Dayev. Later, on April 26, 2012, a MiG-29UB (tactical number 19, serial number 26333) was lost in an accident, resulting in the deaths of the entire crew. Interestingly, the latter aircraft was later used by TEREM – Georgi Benkovski to develop an overhaul project and was eventually sold to Poland in 2015 without engines. In 2020, then-Minister of Defense Krasimir Karakachanov spoke before parliament about the necessity of selling the old aircraft.
Bulgaria will be the second country in Europe, after Slovakia, to operate brand-new F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft. Bratislava has already received its first three units, which are now on its territory. Meanwhile, on January 28 of this year, during the presentation of its 2024 results, Lockheed Martin announced that a total of sixteen F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft had been delivered to customers.
Orders for brand-new F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft currently total 148 units. In addition to Bulgaria and Slovakia, the following countries have also placed orders: Bahrain – 16 units, Jordan – 12 units, Morocco – 25 units, Taiwan – 66 units. On January 26, 2024, Turkey received approval to purchase 40 brand-new F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft. Additionally, the aircraft has been offered to India (as the F-21 variant), as well as to Ukraine, the Philippines, Colombia, and Vietnam.
The latest F-16 variant was first announced at the Singapore Airshow 2012, and the prototype F-16 Block 70 completed its maiden flight on October 16, 2015. It features a new APG-83 SABR radar with an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA). The aircraft is equipped with a new mission computer, a central liquid-crystal display (Center Pedestal Display), new avionics components, a high-bandwidth Ethernet data bus, and an upgraded electronic warfare suite (EW). It is also capable of carrying the Sniper Extended Range targeting pod.
The production of the latest F-16s involves PZL Mielec, a Lockheed Martin subsidiary, which has begun delivering rear fuselage structures for the aircraft. In the future, the scope of production is expected to expand to over 80% of the aircraft’s structural components.
Присъстваме на историческо събитие от ключово значение за развитието на 🇧🇬 ВВС. Поставяме началото на обновяването на бойната #авиация и изграждането на нови способности от Въоръжените сили, с които ще осигурим пълна оперативна съвместимост със съюзниците от #НАТО и ЕС. #F16 pic.twitter.com/tDS7qfgVdG
— MoD Bulgaria (@BulgariaMod) February 1, 2025
🇧🇬 Upgraded airpower for Bulgaria coming soon!
Everything you need to know ➡️ https://t.co/vImdvovqht pic.twitter.com/e1E5kGYo9d
— Lockheed Martin Europe (@LMEuropeNews) January 29, 2025