Bulgaria approves additional F-16 Block 70/72 purchase.

The Bulgarian government has approved funding for the purchase of eight additional Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Block 70/72 Fighting Falcons. This sale was initially cleared by the US State Department in April 2022.

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The F-16C/D Block 70/72 Fighting Falcon is the latest variant of the design and is being offered to a number of export markets (Picture source: Lockheed Martin)

The additional eight F-16C/D Block 70/72s will double the Bulgarian Air Force’s planned Fighting Falcon fleet to 16 aircraft.

The new batch of eight fighters (four F-16 C Block 70 and four F-16 D Block 70) will be armed with air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles. “Air-to-surface, air-to-air strike capabilities are also included in the project. We will have a full squadron of 16 aircraft. The aircraft are expected to arrive in 2027,” Bulgarian Defense Minister Dimitar Stoyanov announced in a statement.