Bulgaria’s defence minister, Nikolay Nenchev, and his Polish counterpart Tomasz Siemoniak have signed an agreement covering the overhaul of the former nation's RAC MiG-29s. A contract signature must be approved by the Bulgarian parliament, with a ratification expected to take place after local elections held in the country on 25 October.
According to the agreement, Poland's WZL-4 military aviation works near Warsaw would overhaul six Klimov RD-33 engines, with four to be completed within six months of delivery and the others after another four months.
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The programme cost is more than €6.1 million ($6.7 million), and Nenchev says the price asked by Poland for the major repair of each RD-33 was €600,000 lower than the unit price asked by RAC MiG. Poland also offered a shorter repair time, and will cover the costs of transporting the engines.
Within 20 days of signing a contract, Poland would also lend two RD-33s to Bulgaria for temporary use, enabling another of its MiG-29s to be able to perform air defence missions.
The Bulgarian air force currently has only four MiG-29s in an airworthy condition, but as a result of the support arrangement, this will be increased by a further three by April 2016.
In August 2014, the Polish and Bulgarian defence ministers signed a letter of intent that established the legal framework for a future agreement on the overhaul of the latter's MiG-29s by the WZL-2 military aviation works in Bydgoszcz, Poland.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
