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World Defense & Security News - Bulgaria & Poland
 
 
 
Bulgaria finalized deal with Poland for country's MiG-29 fighters fleet upgrade
 
According to local medias, Bulgarian Defense Minister Nikolay Nenchev on Tuesday, Oct. 6, entered into details about the price tag of engine repair of six MiG-29 fighter aircraft if it is carried out by state-owned facilities in Poland. The deal with Poland is already finalized, he also said.
     
Bulgaria finalized deal with Poland for country s MiG 29 fighters fleet upgrade 640 001Bulgarian Air Force's MiG-29 fighter aircraft
     
Nenchev told reporters after a hearing by Parliament's Defense Committee that it will take US$580,000 to overhaul a single MiG-29 engine, which in his words means Sofia will pay 29% less for the six fighter jets which Poland agreed to repair than if their original manufacturer, Russian RSK MiG, continued to maintain the aircraft.

The contract is to be carried out by Poland’s state-owned WZL 2 Bydgoszcz and WZL 4 Warsaw plants, which are part of the Polish Armaments Group.

RSK MiG said Poland does not have the documentation and license needed to repair MiG aircraft. Warsaw disputes this and insists it has developed its own documentation.

Bulgaria's Defense ministry cited fees and taxes that two EU member states, like Bulgaria and Poland, do not have to pay for bilateral transactions, which is not the case if a deal is pursued with a Russian company.

Nenchev also forecasted that Bulgaria will receive six of the repaired jets until April next year, daily Dnevnik quotes him as saying. According to him, the document was finalised by the Polish side on last Thursday.

The Bulgarian defence minister calculated that if ten fighter jets are repaired by a company from the Polish military-industrial complex rather than the current company responsible for carrying out the maintenance – the Russian MiG, Bulgaria will save US$13.8 mn.

Last week the BSP demanded that Nenchev quit over plans announced by his ministry to allow military aircraft of other NATO member states to conduct policing of the country's air space joinly with the Bulgarian Air Force.