The Bulgarian Parliament has passed in two readings a bill on the ratification of the international agreement “On the acquisition of eight new F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft, ammunition, training equipment, spare parts, initial support and training of the Bulgarian Air Force,” Report informs referring to the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency (BTA).
Some 151 parliamentarians voted in favor of this decision, 42 – against, 8 more – abstained.
In October, the Bulgarian government approved a project to acquire an additional batch of F-16s from the US. The contract for the acquisition by the Bulgarian authorities of eight F-16 Block 70 fighter jets worth $1.26 billion came into force in July 2019.
The deal was paid off immediately. In July 2022, Bulgaria received an offer from the US for the supply of eight more fighters of the same type. The deadline for responding to the offer was November.
According to the delivery schedule, Bulgaria was supposed to receive the first fighter by mid-2023, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, these dates were shifted to 2025.