The new Bulgarian F-16 Block 70 fighter aircraft, which arrived at Graf Ignatievo air base on 2 April, has conducted the first flight of the procedures in the country connected with its integration into the Bulgarian air force, Bulgarian public service TV BNT reports.

• The first F-16 fighter aircraft for the Bulgarian army has arrived

At the end of April, the operational condition of the first Bulgarian F-16 Block 70 jet fighter provoked a lot of reactions and speculations. The Ministry of Defence and the Air Force denied the speculations that the aircraft was “second hand” or “broken” and explained that a deviation had been ascertained in one of its system during its flight to Bulgaria. At the time, the civilian and military administration assumed the commitment that the jet would fly when it was ready and without any additional risk to the pilots, the engineers and technical staff or the new aviation technology.

Edited by Ivo Ivanov
Translated and posted by milena Daynova
Photo Georgi Petkov