Bulgaria to Acquire Seven French GM400 Radars

Bulgaria will purchase seven GM400 long-range air surveillance radars from French defense company Thales, Zone Militaire reported.

During the Paris Air Show, Bulgarian Defense Minister Atanas Zapryanov and French Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu signed a framework cooperation agreement on June 16.

The agreement formalizes Bulgaria’s entry into the joint acquisition program for the Ground Master 400 radar series.

The Bulgarian Ministry of Defense selected the Thales bid in a tender held in March 2024. Contract negotiations have since been ongoing.

The procurement will be performed via France’s defense procurement agency, the Direction Générale de l’Armement (DGA). The exact GM400 variant to be delivered to the Bulgarian Air Force has not been disclosed.

In addition to the standard GM400 3D radar, Thales offers an enhanced GM400α model with extended detection range.

Miltarnyi previously reported that the GM400 series is in service with several European countries, including Serbia, the Netherlands, and Estonia.