Deputy Prime Minister Grozdan Karadzhov ordered the government "Falcon" to be sold at auction with open bidding.
“I instruct the management of the State Aviation Operator to sell the government plane "Falcon" at auction with open bidding. This way we can achieve the maximum possible price“, he said on his Facebook profile. The decision comes after an analysis of the costs of maintenance and operation of the machine for the last 10 years.
“The government "Falcon" costs the state budget an average of about 4.4 million leva per year with only 290 hours of average annual operation. The mandatory overhaul of the aircraft this year alone amounts to 6.76 million leva. Even without taking into account this colossal amount, the current repairs of the “Falcon“ have cost us an average of half a million leva per year, while for the repair of the other government aircraft – Airbus A319, we have paid 5 times less. But not only the repair, but also the annual specialized ground and simulator training of the pilots and technical personnel for the small aircraft have been five times more expensive“, says Karadjov.
He stressed that there is no urgent need to maintain the aircraft, since the other government aircraft – Airbus A319, is larger, more economical and fully sufficient for the needs of state institutions.
Karadzhov stated that the funds from the sale and those saved from the maintenance of the state aircraft can be directed to areas of much higher public importance, such as the purchase of aerial equipment for extinguishing forest fires, building air search and rescue (SAR) capacity, as well as additional training of flight and rescue crews.
“The life and health of citizens must come first, and the protection of nature immediately after them. The more opportunities for rapid response we have, the more effective we can be in critical moments“, the Deputy Prime Minister emphasized.