Bulgaria's airspace is protected, air force commander Maj. Gen. Nikolay Rusev said on BNT's morning show. He said the steps are precautionary and the tighter surveillance will go on as long as needed.
The contract for the radars is already signed. The deal for the surface-to-air missile systems will be signed in the next few days. The first new radar should arrive within a year and a half. The first radar and missile system deliveries are due in 2028.
So far there has been no need to act. The airspace has not been violated and no drones have flown in. Rusev said the steps should keep any object out of the sky over Bulgaria.
Bulgarian aircraft are in the air. MiG-29, F-16 and Su-25 jets have combat missions, guard the airspace and can hit a target if needed. Fighters and ground-attack aircraft do this in different ways. "We have enough aircraft for this, we have the resources and the pilots, so this is our job," Rusev told BNT.
The air force works with the land forces, the navy and the special forces. It has a permanent link with them and is ready to react if needed. Surveillance does not rely on aircraft alone, as extra surveillance and strike systems are in place. Information also comes from neighbouring countries, which Bulgaria is in constant contact with. Bulgaria works with Romania and Turkey. Surveillance covers the air over Bulgaria, the Balkan Peninsula and the Black Sea.
The radars the army uses now are more than 30 years old, but they work and are kept in good technical shape. Their data is combined with data from allies and neighbours, so there is radar coverage, though a radar cannot detect everything.
A Poseidon aircraft has been based in Bulgaria for a long period and is carrying out its tasks. Other aircraft also fly in Bulgarian skies. Rusev said the Black Sea is among NATO's priorities, as shown by the support and help the alliance is giving now.
The F-16s are not yet fully equipped, but they will take off armed if needed. The general said he would not hesitate to send up an armed F-16 if necessary, and that he sincerely hopes the leadership above him will not have to give an order to fire. Bulgaria now has 9 F-16 pilots, and the number will reach 11 by the end of the year. Rusev said Bulgaria should also plan ahead for the F-35 to close the gap.
The air force needs more people, and so does the army, to do its job, the general said. He said the army was cut to make it small, modern and mobile, and now it is only small.
Rusev denied that he will be the next chief of defence and said he remains air force commander. He also denied that his superiors are his godfathers. "No, they are not my godfathers, I have no family ties. My godfather is Vasil Vasilev Zueka," the general said.