President Rumen Radev co-pilots F-16, praises the aircraft's capabilities

President Rumen Radev was co-pilot in an F-16 fighter piloted by an Italian pilot. The demonstration flight from the Graf Ignatyevo airbase lasted 40 minutes.

"The F-16 flight took me back to 2005, when General Clark, then a captain, and I flew such a fighter. At that time, I was the commander of the Graf Ignatyevo Air Base, and the NATO defence planning process was initiated after our accession," Radev said.

He recalled that thanks to cooperation with the US, "we have mastered many modern tactics, techniques and procedures, we have mastered the full capabilities of the MiG-29 and our pilots are no longer inferior to their American counterparts".

Radev expressed confidence that the acquisition of the F-16 Block 70 would remove a number of technical limitations for Bulgarian aviation. "In order to fully exploit the capabilities of this wonderful aircraft, we need to continue working with the pilots at Aviano Air Base," Radev added.