Bulgaria To Allow NATO To Patrol Its Airspace

Bulgaria will amend its legislation to allow military aircraft of other NATO member states to conduct policing of the country’s air space jointly with the Bulgarian Air Force.
The planned changes will be made in such a way as to guarantee that Bulgaria won’t relinquish sovereignty of its air space to other countries.
The projected amendments are being called for by a need to enhance NATO’s capabilities to police the air space of the countries on its eastern flank, including Bulgaria, as recommended by the Alliance’s Summit in Wales last year.
Six Bulgarian Air Force MiG-29 fighter jets will have their engines overhauled in Poland. The agreement drew fire from the Russian producer of the aircraft RSK MiG who said that Poland has no licence or documentation whatsoever to repair MiG-29s.
Bulgaria needs to have at least one fighter squadron of 12 aircraft in order to maintain high level of combat readiness as a NATO member state. Currently, there are four flight-worthy MiG-29s with enough flying capacity in the Bulgarian Air Force.
Only two MiG-29s could remain flight-worthy and with enough flying capacity after the middle of next year unless the engines of other MiG-29 are repaired.
novinite