Poland will help Bulgaria to extend the service life of MiG-29 fighters

The Ministry of Defense of Bulgaria announced that Poland will repair and support the Bulgarian MiG-29 fighters.

Here's What We Know

Bulgaria ordered eight fourth-generation Block 70/72-level F-16 Fighting Falcon fighters from the United States in 2020. Deliveries were scheduled for 2023-2024, but in early 2022 Lockheed Martin said it could not deliver the first batch of planes on time.

In addition, Bulgaria recently ordered eight more F-16 Fighting Falcon. The second batch will form a complete squadron of fourth-generation fighters. However, the American planes will arrive in Sofia only by 2027.

In this connection Bulgaria turned to Poland for help. It is assumed that the Polish company Wojskowe Zakłady Lotnicze Nr 2 SA will repair RD-33 engines. Bulgaria has already sent a draft deal to repair six engines. The agreement can be signed by the end of this year.

In addition, Poland plans to decommission its own MiG-29 in order to sell its engines. All this will allow prolonging the service life of Bulgarian fighters, which ends in 2027.

Source: Bulgarian Ministry of Defense