Defense Minister Atanas Zapryanov today gave an answer to a parliamentary question about the condition of the two F-16s delivered. From this it is clear that the first F-16D fighter received has problems in the fuel system and, more precisely, there is a leak from one of the tanks. There is not a word about the condition of the second F-16C in the ministerial response.
This was commented on "Facebook" by Dimitar Stoyanov.
If we remember, a few months ago, theories were developed on our TV that when President Radev draws attention to the problems surrounding the F-16, he is endangering our relations with the “strategic partner”. And now Zapryanov with this answer - he just blew up these relations! Or rather, that's exactly why the answer appeared only after Prime Minister Zhelyazkov returned from the USA...
But let's leave that aside, because the whole story is much more complex and raises a whole bunch of other questions.
Like, for example, when was the leak in question discovered?
I will speculate that this happened during the acceptance flights at the end of April. That is, the plane has not been flying for five months, because with a leak this cannot happen. This leads to another question - will the failures of the Bulgarian F-16 be eliminated at such a speed? I have often drawn attention to the issue that the delivery of spare parts and the elimination of open failures in the F-16 cannot happen quickly, especially if the operator does not have its own capacity for repair, production of parts and a large technical first aid kit.
The speed of deliveries is another hot topic. We remember that in the spring two aircraft were supposed to arrive at once. Instead, one arrived on April 2, and the other on June 8. And then - nothing. There were rumors that four would arrive at once in September, but this will not happen. And Minister Zapryanov promised that all eight from the first contract will arrive before the end of the year.
And no, it is not only here. You can pay attention to how deliveries are going in Slovakia. Only five of the 14 aircraft that were contracted have arrived there so far.
The Minister's claims that the US Air Force did not have tankers and that is why deliveries were delayed are dying out! Will it be possible to say in plain text what is happening around the production and delivery of our aircraft?
And let us recall that five months ago, the ordinary MP Mr. Boyko Borisov started firing because someone had bought broken aircraft. But who is this "someone"? Have we forgotten that the deal was negotiated and signed when Borisov was Prime Minister and Zapryanov was Deputy Minister of Defense, who personally negotiated the terms of the contract?
In conclusion, I will allow myself to address the opposition MPs in the National Assembly. Gentlemen, ask, ask and ask again about the multi-billion dollar deals surrounding the delivery of F-16s, frigates for the Navy and Stryker combat vehicles! Ask because taxpayers have the right to know how their money is being spent and what the effectiveness of the huge investments in defense is.