Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Version of sabotage of the first Bulgarian F-16 is not ruled out

Photo: BTA

None of the possible versions why the first Bulgarian F-16 fighter cannot fly has been ruled out. A version of possible sabotage also exists. This was what Gen. Spas Spasov, a former military pilot and chairman of the “Bulgarian Air Force” Foundation has told the BNR. We do not know whether this is a manufacturing defect, or the fault lies with those who operate the jet at the Third Air Base, Gen. Spasov pointed out.

The commander of the Bulgarian Air Force, Gen. Nikolay Rusev, announced that the Bulgarian F-16 cannot fly at the moment due to a deviation in one of the aircraft's systems. The problem became known after a sharp exchange of remarks between GERB leader Boyko Borissov and President Rumen Radev.

The co-chair of the Atlantic Council in Bulgaria, Ivan Anchev, said that probably after the plane flew 9,000 km there were attempts to copy the F-16 software in Bulgaria and it blocked itself.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

16 EU countries, including Bulgaria, will increase defense spending through higher budget deficit

16 EU countries will ask to be allowed to temporarily not apply the rules on budgetary stability in order to be able to make defense spending. Bulgaria is among them, BTA reports. The European Commission presented a White Paper on the future of..

published on 5/1/25 9:43 AM

Sunny weather with afternoon rain showers expected on Thursday

On Thursday, the minimum temperatures in Bulgaria will be from 4 to 9°C . In Sofia it will be around 7°C. During the day, sunny weather will prevail. In places, mainly in Northern Bulgaria and the mountains, there will be short-term precipitation..

published on 4/30/25 7:35 PM

Bulgaria’s President gets into a dispute with the leader of GERB over new F-16 jets

GERB Leader Boyko Borissov and President Rumen Radev got into a dispute in the media over the country's new F-16 fighter jets, the first of which is already on Bulgarian soil, while the second is on its way to the country. "We paid a lot for the..

published on 4/30/25 6:25 PM