Bulgaria’s President Rumen Radev has meet in Sofia with representatives of the American corporation Lockheed Martin. President Radev called for solutions to prevent Bulgaria from losing its defence capabilities after the expiration of the lifespan of the MiG-29 fighter aircraft, taking into account the delay in delivery of the F-16 Block 70 fighter aircraft. 

Lockheed Martin assured Bulgaria’s head of state that the company was making considerable efforts to restore the production line after the difficulties caused by the coronavirus pandemic. They also expressed their readiness to support the Bulgarian Air Force with expertise to build the necessary ground equipment and to maintain the F-16 fighter jets.

The intial plan was for the first F-16 fighter jets to be delivered in 2023. However, in the beginning of 2022 the company announced that the delivery would be delayed by at least two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.