President met Bulgarian pilots who will be trained to fly F-16 military aircraft

Bulgaria’s President Rumen Radev met with the Bulgarian pilots, who will be trained in the United States to fly the American F-16 BLOCK 70 fighter aircraft, which will be acquired by the Bulgarian air force.

The first group includes four pilots: Major Stoyan Petkov, Captain Alexander Velinov, Captain Todor Todorov and Senior Lieutenant Simeon Georgiev.

"Bulgarian aviation has long needed a new fighter with modern defense capabilities," the head of state said at the meeting and wished every success to the future crew, which will be the first to undergo training to master the aircraft.

Rumen Radev stressed that the upcoming training is a serious investment by the Bulgarian state, great recognition, but also a great responsibility for the young pilots.

"They will be expected not only to get knowledge on piloting the new equipment, but also to contribute to the modern development of the Bulgarian Air Force," the President said as quoted by his press office.

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The contract for the purchase of 8 new F-16 Block 70s fighter aircrafts with the United States was promulgated in the State Gazette on July 30. The first F-16 is scheduled to be delivered at the end of 2022.