November 25 (SeeNews) - The Bulgarian parliament on Friday definitively approved the contract for the acquisition of a second batch of eight new F-16 Block 70 fighter aircraft from the U.S. for a total of $1.296 billion (1.25 billion euro).
The decision passed at second and final reading in a 152 - 42 vote with 7 abstentions in the 240-seat National Assembly, as seen in a video file streamed on the website of public radio BNR.
The Bulgarian Socialist Party and the nationalist Vazrazhdane opposed the decision, along with one member of parliament from former governing coalition leader We Continue the Change (WCC), the vote tally showed.
Bulgaria received the offer from the U.S. for the delivery of a second batch of eight F-16s manufactured by US aerospace company Lockheed Martin under the previous coalition government led by WCC leader Kiril Petkov. The validity of the offer had been extended until December 15 from November 1.
Bulgaria expects delivery of the first eight F-16 fighter jets in early 2025, with the second batch likely to arrive in 2029, local media quoted caretaker defence minister Dimitar Stoyanov as saying earlier.
On Monday, Lockheed Martin announced that it is already in the process of producing the F-16 Block 70 fighter jets ordered by Bulgaria, along with those for Slovakia.
($ = 0.962829 euro)