TSAMTO, February 15. The Bulgarian Air Force received all 8 Su-25 attack aircraft that underwent major repairs at the 558th Aviation Repair Plant (Baranovichi, Republic of Belarus).
According to Scramble Magazine, the last Su-25K (b.n. 254) in a digital color scheme was delivered to the Bezmer air base on February 11. After completing the evaluation of the repaired and upgraded aircraft received, the Bulgarian Air Force will consider the possibility of sending six more Su-25s (4 Su-25K and 2 Su-25UBK) to Baranovichi under the available option. At the moment, the financial parameters of such an agreement have not been resolved.CAMTO: the EU has also imposed sanctions on the Belarusian defense industry).
The Bulgarian government approved funding for the repair and extension of the service life of the Su-25 attack aircraft of the Bulgarian Air Force in the amount of BGN 82.5 million ($49.2 million) at the end of November 2018. In total, under the terms of the contract, 8 aircraft in service (6 single-seat Su-25K and 2 two-seat Su-25UBK) were to undergo repairs.
The contractor for the modernization of the Su-25 attack aircraft of the Bulgarian Air Force was selected by JSC "558th Aircraft Repair Plant" (Baranovichi, Republic of Belarus). Defense Minister Krasimir Karakachanov approved the deal with the Belarusian company by his order of November 16, 2018.
Repairs were not started for a long time due to the fact that the Bulgarian authorities and banks could not decide whether the attack aircraft could be temporarily sent to the Republic of Belarus, against which the EU constantly extends the embargo on the supply of weapons and equipment that can be used for "internal repression". Since no payments were made under the contract until the end of 2018, the amount was postponed to 2019.
As a result, in 2019, the Bulgarian parliament approved amendments to the national legislation, which allowed the Bulgarian Ministry of Defense to issue a temporary permit for the export of the Su-25 to the Republic of Belarus, where the first aircraft were sent in August 2019.
After major repairs, the life of the Su-25 fuselages was extended by 800 flight hours, and the R-95SH turbojet engines-by 500 hours. This will allow the Bulgarian Air Force to operate the Su-25 until 2027-2028, with the potential for another 10-year service life extension, which will require another major overhaul of the airframe and engine.
The Bulgarian Air Force received the first Su-25 at the Bezmer air base on September 21, 2020. The official re-acceptance into service after the assembly and testing of three attack aircraft took place on October 25, 2020, and three more vehicles in two batches - in December 2020.
It is assumed that the Bulgarian Defense Ministry will maintain Soviet-made aviation equipment in a combat-ready state until the purchase of new combat aircraft. As a result of major restoration work, the aircraft received additional combat capabilities: the arsenal of ammunition used was expanded, the accuracy of hitting ground targets was increased with an increase in range.
The chief of the General staff of the armed forces of Bulgaria Admiral Emile Eftimov during the visit, 10 Dec 2020 airbase in Elsmere said: "this is an example of consensus between the political and military leadership of the country about where to invest after careful analysis made the right investment choice and achieves the desired results."
At the briefing, it was stated that the navigation system of the Su-25 was completely upgraded, including satellite navigation capabilities. This ensures that the pilot is more informed when performing the assigned tasks. The possibilities of using missile weapons were significantly expanded, and two-channel radio communication was replaced, which allows simultaneous data exchange with the land and sea components. All these and other implemented systems make the upgraded Su-25 much more effective in solving the main tasks of providing direct air support, isolating the combat area and ensuring the conduct of combat by units of land and sea units.
