Lockheed Martin

The American F-16 Viper fighters, for which Bulgaria negotiates, will almost certainly be produced in India. Lockheed Martin proposed to open a new factory in the Asian country and move the production of US planes into it in an attempt to win a major military order from the New Delhi authorities.

The Bulgarian government has asked parliament for a mandate to negotiate with the United States on buying new fighter jets, Defence Minister Krasimir Karakachanov said on Wednesday after ministers met in Sofia. 

It means that Bulgaria plans to move ahead with the purchase of Lockheed Martin's F-16 Block 70 Viper jets to replace its aging fleet of Soviet-era Mig-29 planes.

The Bulgarian government has approved a plan to start talks with the United States on buying eight new F-16 fighter jets to replace its ageing Soviet-made MiG-29s and improve compliance with NATO standards, the defence minister said on Wednesday.

Turkey needs to choose between the Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets it has ordered from the United States or the acquisition of the Russian S-400 missile system, Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen told Kathimerini in a recent interview at Congress.

Washington is upping the pressure on Bulgaria to secure the sale of F-16 fighter jets to the Balkan country over rival bids from Sweden and Italy.

In June 2018 Bulgarian Parliament approved a plan to spend around $2 billion on its Air Force modernization. It planned to purchase 16 fighter jets to replace its existing air fleet of MiG-29s.

"A new F-16 is a much better aircraft than all the others available," Bulgarian Prime Minister Boiko Borissov said on December 14.

The Swedish government has optimized the offer for Gripen and is now proposing 10 fighters instead of 8, "said Joakim Wallin, Director of Export and International Relations at Sweden's State Property Defense Agency (FMV), reports Dnevnik. 

The United States was chosen as the Thessaloniki International Fair's country of honor this year and, demonstrating its appreciation of that distinction, the US honored the fair with a truly spectacular pavilion. More than 50 American firms and educational entities set up their booths in what resembled a labyrinth of countless, impressive exhibits.

SOFIA, Bulgaria (BulgarianMilitary.com) - Lockheed Martin's presentation on 18 September in Sofia, with which the company officially made its offer for a sale of F-16 Block 72 to Bulgaria, undoubtedly turned out to be a strong move by the U.S. company, considering that it was the only from all participants that took this commercial practice.

Bulgaria will be selecting among four offers of multi-purpose jet fighters to regenerate its ageing fleet of Soviet MiG-29 planes, the Defence Ministry said on Monday.

The four options came from Italy, the US and Sweden.

US contractor Lockheed Martin has proposed the newest version of its F-16 Fighting Falcon platform, the fourth generation F-16V "Viper".