site.btaPresident Rumen Radev to Visit Graf Ignatievo Air Base and Get Acquainted with Process of Accepting and Mastering F-16 Fighter Jets

President Rumen Radev will visit the Graf Ignatievo air base on Wednesday and get acquainted with the process of accepting and mastering the F-16 Block 70 fighter jets, as well as the stages of building the necessary infrastructure, the press service of the head of State said.

Rumen Radev will talk with the personnel and management of the airbase. At the end of June, the President noted the need to accelerate the training of the F-16 fighter flight crew.

Bulgaria received the first two F-16 Block 70 fighters in April and June. By the end of 2025, in fulfillment of the 2019 contract, this country should receive a total of eight such aircraft. The Bulgarian Air Force will have one squadron of F-16 Block 70s by the end of 2027, when eight more aircraft are expected to be delivered under the second contract

The first combat duty of the F-16 will be assumed in 2026 at the earliest, said Chief of Defence Admiral Emil Eftimov, in early June. He added that the first aircraft, which arrived in April, is already flying and stressed that there are enough trained pilots to fly the fighters.