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Defence & Space

Ukraine Will Receive Billions of Dollars from G7 Countries

2024-12-11

The U.S. Treasury Department announced a 20 billion USD loan to Ukraine, which will be financed from frozen Russian assets, as part…

Further Support for Ukrainian F-16AM/BM

2024-12-11

The U.S. Department of State has approved the potential sale of a support package for the operation of Lockheed Martin F-16AM/BM…

Russian Offensive Against Ukraine’s Energy Industry

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The Russians are stockpiling missiles to launch another aerial offensive. On one hand, this shows the weakness of the Russian industry,…

Will the conflict in the Middle East affect the Russian “Special Operation”?

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Iran had been announcing retaliatory actions for many months. Finally, it carried out a large-scale attack on targets in Israel. Russian…

Further Support for Ukrainian F-16AM/BM

2024-12-11

The U.S. Department of State has approved the potential sale of a support package for the operation of Lockheed Martin F-16AM/BM…

ST Engineering Proposes Terrex II for Kazakhstan with Local Manufacturing Option

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The Singaporean company ST Engineering and the Kazakh company Kazakhstan Paramount Engineering have signed a strategic cooperation agreement under which a wheeled…

Rheinmetall and Hologate sign strategic cooperation agreement for XR and VR simulation solutions

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Rheinmetall and Hologate announce the start of a strategic cooperation. The aim is to develop innovative simulation solutions. Both companies combine expertise…

Thales at Eurosatory 2024: Trusted intelligence serving the Armed Forces

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Thales Group will be showing the latest technologies to support the sovereignty, safety and sustainability of nations.

IGEF’25: An Event Uniting Global Security Expertise and Innovation in Ankara

2024-11-25

The International Security and Defence Fair (IGEF’25) is set to convene in Ankara’s ATO Congresium, Congress and Exhibition Center, bringing together…

CS WOT participating in international exchange of experience on loitering ammunition

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On November 19-20, the Loitering Munitions Conference, the world’s first conference dedicated to loitering munition systems, was held in London. The…

Rheinmetall AG and Auterion cooperation on military drone technology

2024-12-09

German-based Rheinmetall AG and Swiss-based Auterion are working together on drone technology and developing standard operating system for military industries.

Supervisory Board of Rheinmetall AG: Sabina Jeschke and Sigmar Gabriel nominated as new members

2024-12-06

Prof Dr Sabina Jeschke and former Vice-Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel have been nominated as new members of Rheinmetall AG’s supervisory board.

Italian National Fire Corps to strengthen capabilities with specialized AW139

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The Italian National Fire Corps (Vigili del Fuoco, part of the Ministry of the Interior) will introduce eight AW139 intermediate…

One million rounds of shotgun ammunition from FAM Pionki for the Polish Police

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The Polish National Police Headquarters awarded FAM Pionki – Fabryka Amunicji Myśliwskiej (Hunting Ammunition Factory) – a contract for the supply…

Further Support for Ukrainian F-16AM/BM

2024-12-11

The U.S. Department of State has approved the potential sale of a support package for the operation of Lockheed Martin F-16AM/BM…

Rheinmetall AG and Auterion cooperation on military drone technology

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German-based Rheinmetall AG and Swiss-based Auterion are working together on drone technology and developing standard operating system for military industries.

Ukraine Will Receive Billions of Dollars from G7 Countries

2024-12-11

The U.S. Treasury Department announced a 20 billion USD loan to Ukraine, which will be financed from frozen Russian assets, as part…

The seventy-sixth package of U.S. military aid to Ukraine

2024-11-21

The U.S. Department of Defense has announced the eighteenth military aid package this year (and the 76th overall) and the…

ICEYE US expands its collaboration with NASA

2024-09-11

The American company ICEYE US, a subsidiary of the Polish-Finnish ICEYE, has signed an agreement to expand its cooperation with the American…

Rheinmetall AG strengthens its cooperation with the Polish-Finnish company ICEYE

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The German group Rheinmetall AG is strengthening its cooperation with the Polish-Finnish company ICEYE, obtaining exclusive rights to offer its satellite…

Shooting

Direct Action SWAGs: Casual Gear, Tactical Edge

2024-12-05

Direct Action SWAGs is a new clothing line, consisting of hoodies, t-shirts, patches, and hats with themes related to the military-tactical industry.

Black Week at Clawgear

2024-11-28

The Black Week promotion at Clawgear runs until December 2, 2024. The more you add to your cart, the bigger the…

Black Week at Clawgear

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Setting Up a Shooting Belt: An Example with Clawgear

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To assist with shooting training and beyond, various belts and gear configurations have been developed and customized to suit individual needs. It’s…

Direct Action SWAGs: Casual Gear, Tactical Edge

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Black Week at Clawgear

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The Black Week promotion at Clawgear runs until December 2, 2024. The more you add to your cart, the bigger the…

POLSECURE: Holsters HPE Poland offer for uniformed services

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At the 3rd International Police and Public Security Fair POLSECURE 2024 in Kielce, Holsters HPE Poland presented its offer for…

Firearms ownership in Poland, 2022: growth in the year of war

2023-03-14

National Police Headquarters released statistics regarding the number of firearm permits and individual firearms owned by Polish citizens. It can be…

The tests of MSBS Grot S16

2024-11-18

The MSBS Grot S16 FB-M1 is a semi-automatic variant of the standard assault rifle used by the Polish Armed Forces and law…

The GROT BS10 FB-M1 BULLPUP is hitting the market!

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Fabryka Broni Łucznik-Radom is launching the GROT BS10 FB-M1 BULLPUP, a 5.56 mm semi-automatic bullpup rifle equipped with a short 10.5-inch (267…

Setting Up a Shooting Belt: An Example with Clawgear

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To assist with shooting training and beyond, various belts and gear configurations have been developed and customized to suit individual needs. It’s…

Weapon light: a practical tool for everyday service. How to choose?

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Firearms In Poland 2023: Number of permits continues to grow

2024-02-17

The National Police Headquarters has released statistics regarding the number of firearm permits and firearms themselves in the hands of…

Firearms ownership in Poland, 2022: growth in the year of war

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National Police Headquarters released statistics regarding the number of firearm permits and individual firearms owned by Polish citizens. It can be…

5 Best Value ATN Rifle Scopes Under €1500

2022-11-11

ATN is a leading manufacturer of daytime optics, smart night vision, and thermal vision technology. The innovative features and ergonomic designs…

MILMAG Visits Grand Power

2022-05-23

Grand Power is a Slovak manufacturer of the acknowledged good quality firearms. Take part in our guided tour with English subtitles.

EOTECH Holographic Sight – History, Technology, Practice

2024-09-02

The holographic sight is a device known for nearly 30 years and used by professionals around the world. A favorite sight of many…

Testing Blackhawk Holster

2024-01-31

Blackhawk is a company that needs no introduction to any shooting enthusiast. For 30 years, they have been involved in producing the highest…

EOTECH Holographic Sight – History, Technology, Practice

2024-09-02

The holographic sight is a device known for nearly 30 years and used by professionals around the world. A favorite sight of many…

The first Bulgarian F-16 Is Nearing The End Of Production

A delegation of Bulgarian authorities visited the facility of the American company Lockheed Martin in Greenville, South Carolina, where the assembly of the first of 16 F-16C/D Block 70 multi-role aircraft for the air force will soon be completed.

January 16th, 2024. Bulgarian Minister of Defense Todor Tagarev, Ambassador of Bulgaria to the USA Georgi Panayotov, and Chief of Defense Admiral Emil Eftimov visited the Lockheed Martin F-16 production facility in Greenville last week to assess the progress on the F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft, which are intended for their country.

Photos: Lockheed Martin

Currently, seven multi-role aircraft ordered by Bulgaria are in various stages of production. The maiden flight of the first Bulgarian F-16 is scheduled for later this year.

OJ Sanchez, Vice President and General Manager of the Integrated Fighter Group at Lockheed Martin, commented on the visit:

As part of the ongoing contract, Bulgaria is acquiring modern and proven fighters that will serve it for decades as part of 21st Century Security, ensuring the highest combat capability and interoperability within the NATO alliance. We are proud that the most advanced F-16 aircraft ever built will be delivered to Bulgaria, thus enhancing the defense capabilities of the country.

Bulgaria will be the second European country to receive the F-16C/D Block 70. So far, the production line in Greenville has already assembled 135 aircraft of this version, making this facility one of the key contributors to the security of allied nations worldwide.

Press release

Analysis

This is not the first visit of a Bulgarian delegation to the USA to inspect the progress on the F-16 aircraft for it’s air force (Voennovëzdušni sili, VVS). On November 11, 2023, the Bulgarian Ministry of Defense presented the first yet unfinished aircraft.

According to the current schedule, the first two aircraft, including one F-16C and one F-16D, are expected to be completed by the end of July 2024. Deliveries to the recipient will commence no later than the end of March 2025.

Bulgaria ordered 16 F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft, with the first eight ordered in July 2019 in the latest production version, for the equivalent of $1.256 billion, and the remaining eight in September 2021. However, these were expected to be delayed, and according to information from February 17, 2022, the first deliveries were supposed to start no earlier than 2024 (and actually, it is supposed to involve symbolic handover in the USA, where Bulgarian personnel are trained, rather than relocation to Bulgaria). The main reason for the delays, primarily among Lockheed Martin subcontractors, was the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally, they were planned to be fulfilled between 2023 and 2027.

The Bulgarian Air Force possesses 11 MiG-29A/UB fighter aircraft, stationed at the 3rd Fighter Air Base at Graf Ignatievo airfield. However, this fleet is gradually decreasing in size (in 2021, it had 14 aircraft), and it suffers from low operational readiness (during that time, only 5-7 were expected to be operational). Additionally, one of the aircraft was lost in crash on June 9, 2021. Consequently, the government in Sofia declined to transfer these aircraft to Ukraine for combat operations without support in terms of equipment from their allies.

Originally, in the years 1989-1990, the Soviet Union supplied Bulgaria with 22 MiG-29 aircraft, including 18 single-seat MiG-29A (9.12A) and 4 two-seat MiG-29UB (9.51). On September 29, 1994, MiG-29A with tactical number 25 crashed (the base commander of Ravnec, Major Ivan Dayev, was killed), and on April 26, 2012, MiG-29UB with tactical number 19 and serial number 26333 was involved in an accident (the entire crew was killed). Interestingly, the latter aircraft was later used by the Bulgarian TEREM “Georgi Benkovski” company to develop a refurbishment project and was subsequently sold to Poland in 2015 without engines. In 2020, the then Minister of Defense, Krasimir Karakachanov, spoke in the parliament about the need to sell the old aircraft.

By the end of 2023, Lockheed Martin had produced the first two Slovak F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft (out of 14 ordered) and two for Bahrain (out of 16 ordered). On January 10 of this year, Bratislava formally received these aircraft.

Lockheed Martin has received orders for 136 F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft so far, and this number will soon increase to 148. These orders come from various countries, including Bulgaria, Slovakia, Bahrain, Jordan (12 units), Morocco (25 units), and Taiwan (66 units). Additionally, the aircraft are being offered to India (as the F-21 variant), Ukraine, the Philippines, Colombia, and Vietnam. It appears that there may soon be a breakthrough regarding the 40 F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft for Turkey, after Ankara gave the green light to Sweden within NATO.

In the production of the latest F-16s, Lockheed Martin’s subsidiary Polish-based PZL Mielec has been involved. On August 29, 2023, it announced the completion of the production of the first rear fuselage structure for this aircraft.

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