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109-540: Development was approved by the NATO Military Committee in December 1955. The system was to be based on four air defense regions (ADRs) coordinated by SACEUR (Supreme Allied Commander Europe). Starting from 1956 early warning coverage was extended across Western Europe using 18 radar stations. This part of the system was completed by 1962. Linked to existing national radar sites the coordinated system

218-479: A Bleriot XXI , which Simeon Petrov flew on 13 August 1912 to become the first Bulgarian to pilot an airplane over Bulgaria. Following the outbreak of the First Balkan War , Bulgarian pilots, while still abroad, hastily procured aircraft to be shipped home after them and foreign volunteer pilots converged from all over Europe to fly for Bulgaria. After the front lines had stabilized, an Aeroplane Platoon

327-469: A seaplane station under German control was established near Varna , initially operating four Friedrichshafen FF.33 bombers and a Rumpler 6B1 fighter. Later, at the coast of the Varna Lake, a second seaplane station was built (this one under Bulgarian control), operating the same inventory. Near Sozopol a forward fuel and ammunition replenishment base was established in support of patrol flights over

436-532: A Supreme Allied Commander as its commander. Bulgarian Air Force The Bulgarian Air Force ( Bulgarian : Военновъздушни сили , romanized :  Voennovazdushni sili ) is one of the three branches of the Military of Bulgaria , the other two being the Bulgarian Navy and Bulgarian land forces . Its mission is to guard and protect the sovereignty of Bulgarian airspace, and jointly with

545-546: A U.S. Navy admiral. His title was Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic (SACLANT), and the entire command was usually known as SACLANT. Both Supreme Commanders have, until 2009, been American, with a deputy commander from another NATO member, though only British and Germans have held the post. Responding to the establishment of NATO, the Warsaw Pact was established in 1955 along with their own posts of United Armed Forces Supreme Commander and Chief of Combined Staff . Until

654-623: A flight of three armed Albatros C.III two-seat trainers covered the center of the city as backup. The bomber successfully dropped its bombs over Sofia while escaping anti-aircraft fire but, while departing, was attacked by the Bulgarian Fokkers, one piloted by Marko Parvanov, which brought the Farman down with a dead engine. Another Allied aircraft, a British Armstrong Whitworth F.K.3 , was captured by Bulgarian troops on 12 February 1917 after engine problems forced it to land. Both it and

763-523: A number of photographic cameras and other aviation equipment were destroyed at the military airfield of Bozhurishte. The seaplanes of the Bulgarian Navy were delivered by train to the same airfield and scrapped soon after that. Due to the devotion of the Air Troops personnel and the help of the population of the surrounding villages, several aircraft were hidden, thus evading Allied inspection following destruction. Seven DFW C.V, Albatros C.III and

872-837: A series of remarkable missions, such as an attempted resupply of the garrison in the colony German East Africa and the bombing of Naples and Port Said . During a mission against the British naval base in Malta , a lightning strike over the Mediterranean Sea set it alight and completely destroyed it. All hands were lost. On 4 October 1918 the Bulgarian Tsar issued a Royal Act of Demobilization. This resulted in military aviation being converted to its peacetime structure. The Aeroplane group, based in Bozhurishte comprised

981-531: A single Fokker D.VII were among the survivors. In addition, at least ten aviation engines ( Benz Bz.IV and Mercedes D.III ) were also saved. The Bulgarian government tried to get around the ban for military flight activity by establishing a Gendarmery Aeroplane Section in 1919. Since the Gendarmery was at that time a service under the Ministry of War, the creation of the unit was met by fierce opposition by

1090-632: A term used by the Allies during World War I , and is currently used only within NATO for Supreme Allied Commander Europe and Supreme Allied Commander Transformation . On 26 March 1918, the French marshal Ferdinand Foch was appointed Supreme Allied Commander, gaining command of all Allied forces everywhere, and coordinated the British, French, American, and Italian armies to stop the German spring offensive ,

1199-484: A training orlyak (in Plovdiv ), a maritime yato (at NAS Chaika, Varna) and additional operational support units. Colonel Ivan Mikhailov was appointed the first chief of the air force with Lieutenant-Colonel Georgi Vasilev appointed as his Deputy. In late 1930s Bulgaria started acquiring Polish and German aircraft. In 1936 Bulgaria ordered 14 PZL P.24 B fighters and 12 PZL.43 light bombers from Poland, which due to

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1308-644: A variant of the HR-3000 radar, which is also used in the German HADR radars. The newer RAT-31SL/N radars are sometimes designated SINDRE II. The Polish Armed Forces Operational Command 's Air Operations Centre is located in the Warsaw-Pyry neighborhood and reports to CAOC Uedem. The 3rd Wrocław Radiotechnical Brigade is responsible for the operation of the Armed Forces radar equipment. As of 2021,

1417-715: Is a United States Space Force installation and its radars are part of the North American Aerospace Defense Command and United States Space Command . The Estonian Air Force 's Air Operations Control Centre is located at Ämari Air Base and reports to the Baltic Air Surveillance Network's Regional Airspace Surveillance Coordination Centre (RASCC) in Karmėlava , Lithuania, which in turn reports to CAOC Uedem. The French Air and Space Force 's Air Operations Centre

1526-622: Is also unique in Europe in possessing a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS) which is based at RAF Fylingdales . The United States Air Force 's control centres and radar stations are part of the Canadian/American North American Aerospace Defense Command. Supreme Allied Commander Supreme Allied Commander is the title held by the most senior commander within certain multinational military alliances. It originated as

1635-791: Is at Keflavik Air Base and reports to CAOC Uedem in Germany. The Italian Air Force 's Combined Air Operations Centre (CAOC 5) in Poggio Renatico was deactivated in 2013 and replaced with the Mobile Command and Control Regiment (RMCC) at Bari Air Base , while the Centre's responsibilities were transferred to the CAOC Torrejón in Spain. The Latvian Air Force 's Air Operations Centre is located at Lielvārde Air Base and reports to

1744-531: Is headquartered in Brnik and reports to CAOC Torrejón. The Italian Air Force's 4th Wing at Grosseto Air Base and 36th Wing at Gioia del Colle Air Base rotate a QRA flight of Eurofighter Typhoons to Istrana Air Base , which are responsible for the air defense of Northern Italy and Slovenia. The Spanish Air Force 's Combined Air Operations Centre (CAOC 8) at Torrejón Air Base was deactivated in 2013 and replaced at same location by CAOC Torrejon, which took over

1853-974: Is located at Mont Verdun Air Base and reports to CAOC Uedem. Most French radar sites use the PALMIER radar, which is being taken out of service. By 2022 all PALMIER radars will have been replaced with new radar stations using the GM 403 radar. Additionally the French Air and Space Force fields a GM 406 radar at the Cayenne-Rochambeau Air Base in French Guiana to protect the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou . The German Air Force 's Combined Air Operations Centre (CAOC 2) in Uedem

1962-559: Is located at Nieuw-Milligen and reports to CAOC Uedem. The air force's main radars are being replaced with two modern SMART-L GB radars. The Royal Norwegian Air Force 's Combined Air Operations Centre (CAOC 3) in Reitan was deactivated in 2008 and its responsibilities were transferred to the Combined Air Operations Centre Finderup (CAOC F). After CAOC F was deactivated in 2013 the responsibility for

2071-648: Is monitored and guarded by the Belgian Air Component's Control and Reporting Centre at Beauvechain Air Base. The Armed Forces of Montenegro do not possess a modern air defense radar and the country's airspace is monitored by Italian Air Force radar sites. The Armed Forces Air Surveillance and Reporting Centre is located at Podgorica Airport in Golubovci and reports to CAOC Torrejón in Spain. The Royal Netherlands Air Force 's Air Operations Centre

2180-603: The 10th Composite Aviation Corps , called and including into it the newly transformed into air bases training regiments in Shtraklevo and Kamenets. The regiment in Dolna Mitropoliya was disbanded. With the end of the Cold war, Bulgaria's air force reduced to 226 aircraft. All MiG-25 fighters were grounded in 1991 and a large number of early MiG-21 variants were withdrawn from service and scrapped, with armament from

2289-592: The Central Powers on 4 October 1915. The Aeroplane Section of the Bulgarian Army was reformed with assistance from Germany and Austria. Aircraft were deployed to Kumanovo Airfield in support of advancing Bulgarian forces, but bad weather initially prevented any flying. Until then they had completed 11 combat sorties from an airfield in Sofia (now the central railway station). As the frontline advanced,

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2398-599: The DAR 2 (an indigenous variant of the German Albatros C.III of the same era). Both types became well-known and loved by the personnel of the former Air Troops and gained Bulgarian combat service experience. Development of a new type – the DAR 1 – was also started. During the course of 1926 the Airplane School was moved to the geographical center of the country. The town of Kazanlak was well suited, for it

2507-661: The Eurofighter Typhoon , Dassault Rafale , Saab JAS 39 Gripen , Mikoyan MiG-29 or MiG-35 . CAC/PAC JF-17 Thunder , Lockheed Martin F-16 and McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet . On 9 March 2011 the Swedish Government submitted its response to the RFI containing eight new Gripen C/D fighters. The Ministry of Defence extended the time limit for submittal of responses by two months due to the lack of responses from

2616-732: The German Air Defence Ground Environment (GEADGE) , an updated radar network adding the southern part of Germany to the European system and Coastal Radar Integration System (CRIS) , adding data links from Danish coastal radars. In order to counter the hardware obsolescence, during the mid-1990s NATO started the AEGIS Site Emulator (ASE) program allowing the NATINADS/AEGIS sites to replace the proprietary hardware (the 5118ME computer and

2725-776: The German-Soviet Invasion of Poland stopped deliveries (although two more PZL.43A were delivered by the Germans later). In less than 3 years the Air Force inventory had grown up to 478 aircraft of which 135 were of Bulgarian construction. In the years 1938-1939, according to the design and with the support of the Polish PZL , a modern DSF factory was built in Lovech , where new PZL P.24J fighters were to be built under license. However, these plans were thwarted by

2834-807: The Great Patriotic War : the Polish Armed Forces in the East , 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps , French Normandie-Niemen Fighter Regiment and Romanian Tudor Vladimirescu Division from 1943, then from 1944 until the end of the war also the Romanian Army , Bulgarian Army and Yugoslav National Liberation Army . After the end of the Soviet Union's European theater of World War II, during the Soviet-Japanese War ,

2943-653: The Marconi S-723 radar of the Air Component's Air Traffic Control Centre in Semmerzake . The Bulgarian Air Force 's Air Sovereignty Operations Centre is located in Sofia and reports to CAOC Torrejón. The Bulgarian Air Force fields three control and surveillance zones, which operate obsolete Soviet -era radars. The Bulgarian Air Force intends to replace these radars with fewer, but more capable Western 3-D radars as soon as possible. The future locations of

3052-661: The Third Reich . As a part of the joint armed forces' effort on 26 June 1941 6 Avia B.71 and 9 Dornier Do 17M bombers were transferred to the Badem Chiflik airfield near Kavala (in Greece). They were tasked with anti-submarine patrols and air support for Italian shipping over the adjacent area of the Aegean Sea . In addition 9 Letov Š.328s based in Badem Chiflik provided the ground troops with air reconnaissance. At

3161-627: The Tsardom of Bulgaria signed the Tripartite Pact , becoming a formal ally of Germany. Under the treaty, Bulgaria allowed the use of its territory as a staging point for the invasion of Yugoslavia and Greece and some minor logistical support. Despite the impressive looking inventory, Bulgaria's fighter force in January 1941 consisted of only 91 machines, with just 18 of them modern Bf 109E monoplanes. A further 11 were PZL P.24B fighters, and

3270-714: The Tupolev Tu-2 . By 1954, these types were being withdrawn from service, as the Korean War marked the beginning of the jet fighter era and in 1955 a new wave of deliveries began, starting with the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 . Later additions included Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 and MiG-19 fighters and Ilyushin Il-28 bombers, as well as the Mil Mi-1 , the first helicopter. These aircraft were withdrawn in

3379-667: The WSR-98D radar stations in Bârnova, Medgidia, Bobohalma, Timișoara, and Oradea are officially designated and operated as a civilian radar stations by the National Meteorological Administration , however their data is fed into the military air surveillance system as well. The Slovak Air Force 's Air Operations Centre is located at Zvolen and reports to CAOC Uedem. The Slovenian Air Force and Air Defense 's Airspace Surveillance and Control Centre

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3488-592: The Western Front and at Xanthi. They operated several types, including the Albatros D.III and Halberstadt, which would later mistakenly be listed on the Bulgarian inventory by some sources. On 30 September 1916 a French Farman F.40 bomber of Escadrille 384 was tasked with attacking the Bulgarian capital, Sofia . Two Bulgarian Fokker E.IIIs were positioned south of Sofia to intercept the intruder, while

3597-403: The most senior leaders in the British Armed Forces and United States Armed Forces . These commanders reported to the British/American Combined Chiefs of Staff , although in the case of the Pacific and South East Asia, the relevant national command authorities of the American Joint Chiefs of Staff or the British Chiefs of Staff Committee had responsibility for the main conduct of the war in

3706-443: The 1970s, when the last wave of modernization began. In June 1979, the Mil Mi-24 Hind entered service through a significant re-equipment program and boosted the capabilities of the BAF. The Sukhoi Su-22 and Su-25 entered service in 1988 in the strike and reconnaissance role. 40 Su-25K/KUBs and 21 Su-22M4/UM-3s were delivered. In 1993, the air regiments in Bezmer and Sadovo were experimentally transformed into "air bases" with

3815-420: The 1980s the Airborne Early Warning / Ground Environment Integration Segment (AEGIS) upgraded the NATINADS with the possibility to integrate the AWACS radar picture and all of its information into its visual displays. (NOTE: This AEGIS is not to be confused with the U.S.Navy AEGIS , a shipboard fire control radar and weapons system.) AEGIS processed the information through Hughes H5118ME computers, which replaced

3924-435: The 19th century. At the 1892 Plovdiv International Fair , two lieutenants of the Bulgarian Army flew in the 'La France' balloon owned by the Frenchman Eugène Godard . Later, inspired by the flight, they succeeded in convincing the Bulgarian General Staff that the Army should build a balloon force. Despite numerous refusals from military schools around Europe who would not teach Bulgarian officers to use airships, eventually

4033-415: The 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Army Aviation Orlyaks (Army Air Groups or air regiments), each attached to the correspondingly-numbered field army. Each orlyak had a fighter, a line bomber and two reconnaissance yatos (squadrons). There was also an Independent Aviation corps, which combined the 5th Bomber and 6th Fighter Regiments. The training units consisted of the "Junker" School Orlyak at Vrazhdebna airfield,

4142-505: The 2nd Training Orlyak at Telish airfield (called the Blind Flying Training School) and the 3rd Training Orlyak at Stara Zagora airfield. In 1940, the Bulgarian aviation industry provided the air force with 42 DAR 9 Siniger and 45 Kaproni-Bulgarski KB-5 Chuchuliga aircraft, along with preparing for serial production of the KB-6 – Bulgaria's first twin-engined aircraft. At year's end, the Bulgarians had 595 aircraft (of which 258 were combat aircraft) and 10,287 personnel. On 1 March 1941,

4251-480: The 54th Radar Regiment "Veszprém" , however it is unclear if they will remain in service once Hungary's newest radar at Medina reaches full operational capability. The Iceland Air Defense System , which is part of the Icelandic Coast Guard , monitors Iceland's airspace. Air Defense is provided by fighter jets from NATO allies, which rotate units for the Icelandic Air Policing mission to Keflavik Air Base. The Iceland Air Defense System's Control and Reporting Centre

4360-399: The Allied Powers (SCAP). The Pacific Ocean Areas (POA), divided into the Central Pacific Area, the North Pacific Area and the South Pacific Area, were commanded by Admiral Chester W. Nimitz , Commander-in-Chief Pacific Ocean Areas. Although not bearing any official title of Supreme Allied Commander, Joseph Stalin , as Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Armed Forces , as well as

4469-539: The Allied commission. This almost resulted in the destruction of the whole Vrazhdebna Airfield , but the disbandment of the unit prevented this from happening. An Aeroflight Section under the Ministry of Railways , Postal Service and Telegraph was created in 1920. Bulgarian aviation personnel assembled two airplanes from hidden spares and parts, salvaged from the destroyed military airplanes. The two aircraft, known as "the mixed planes", recorded about 1000 flight hours altogether. The sole remaining Bulgarian Fokker D.VII

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4578-405: The Allies, especially the British and French. The First Aeroplane Section (the country's only aircraft unit) was attached to the Second Bulgarian Army. It flew 255 sorties compared to 397 flown by the four squadrons of the Entente it opposed, and operated the following types: In addition, the Bulgarian Navy used the following airplanes: A number of Bulgarian pilots flew with German air units at

4687-441: The Baltic Air Surveillance Network's Regional Airspace Surveillance Coordination Centre (RASCC) in Karmėlava, Lithuania, which in turn reports to CAOC Uedem. The Lithuanian Air Force 's Air Operations Control Centre is located in Karmėlava and reports to the Baltic Air Surveillance Network's Regional Airspace Surveillance Coordination Centre (RASCC) co-located in Karmėlava, which in turn reports to CAOC Uedem. Luxembourg's airspace

4796-408: The Black Sea shores the "Galata" Fighter Orlyak was established at NAS Chaika , Varna , with the 10 Bf 109E-4s and 6 Avia B-534s. The S.328s were also used for anti-submarine patrols over the Black Sea , flying out of the Sarafovo and Balchik airfields. At the end of 1941 the inventory of His Majesty's Air Troops consisted of 609 aircraft of 40 different types. On 22 June 1941, Germany invaded

4905-462: The DAR 1 biplane were produced and entered service with the Aeroflight Directorate during 1926. The 1927 structure of the Directorate was the following: In 1928 the Ministry of War started the ambitious 10-year program for development of the military aviation (still banned by the peace treaty). According to the plan the following structure had to be achieved: In 1931 Bulgaria signed the Warsaw Treaty, concerning international civil air activities and

5014-520: The European continent. The command is based at Ramstein Air Base in Germany and has two subordinate commands in Germany and Spain. The Royal Canadian Air Force and United States Air Force fall under command of the Canadian /American North American Aerospace Defense Command . The Albanian Air Force 's Air Surveillance Centre is based in Rinas and the Air Force operates a Lockheed Martin AN/TPS-77 radar on top of Mida mountain near Pukë . The Belgian Air Component 's Control and Reporting Centre

5123-428: The H3118M computers installed at NADGE sites in the late 1960s and early 1970s. NATINADS ability to handle data increased with faster clock rates. The H5118M computer had a staggering 1 megabyte of memory and could handle 1.2 million instructions per second while the former model had a memory of only 256 kilobytes and a clock speed of 150,000 instructions per seconds. NATINADS/AEGIS were complemented, in West Germany by

5232-413: The Imperial Aviation School in St. Petersburg enrolled Lieutenant Vasil Zlatarov as a student. On 20 April 1906 "Vazduhoplavatelno Otdelenie" (roughly translated as Aviation Squad) was created to operate observation balloons for the Army, initially as a part of Railway Battalion. After graduation Lt. Zlatarov was appointed its first commander. After operating small balloons, in 1911 a bigger Godard balloon

5341-436: The Polish Air Force possesses three NUR-12M and three RAT-31DL long-range radars making up BACKBONE system, which are listed below. The Portuguese Air Force 's Combined Air Operations Centre (CAOC 10) in Lisbon was deactivated in 2013 and its responsibilities were transferred to CAOC Torrejón in Spain. The Romanian Air Force 's Air Operations Centre is headquartered in Balotești and reports to CAOC Torrejón. Additionally,

5450-402: The Soviet Union , but Bulgaria refused to take part, although it did declare war with Great Britain and the United States of America in December 1941. Bulgaria's inaction against the Soviet Union meant that supplies of German aircraft slowed to a trickle, with only four aircraft delivered from January to September 1942. The war declared by the Tsardom of Bulgaria against the US and Great Britain

5559-412: The Sovietized Bulgarian People's Army , adopted the doctrine of the Soviet deep battle during the Cold War . The force expanded rapidly with deliveries of different types of combat aircraft. The first shipments of Soviet equipment arrived immediately after the end of World War II, mostly consisting of propeller-driven aircraft, such as the Ilyushin Il-2 (120 Il-2 and 10 Il-2U), the Ilyushin Il-10 and

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5668-449: The Spanish Civil War could not be delivered by sea and were instead shipped delayed by rail. The first aircraft entered service in the summer of 1937. The reestablished air force was satisfied with the performance of new planes and in 1938, a second order was placed for 42 PZL.43A light bombers and 12 PZL P.24F fighters, which differed from the earlier versions in having more powerful engines, stronger armament and other improvements. Before

5777-401: The Turkish radar system is unknown. The Royal Air Force 's Air Surveillance and Control System is located at RAF Boulmer , and reports to CAOC Uedem. The RAF operates seven Remote Radar Heads (RRHs) across the UK, which feed back to the Control and Reporting Centre at RAF Boulmer . Under Project Guardian, all of the UK's radar stations and systems are being upgraded and strengthened. The UK

5886-486: The air defense of Norway was transferred to CAOC Uedem in Germany and the Royal Norwegian Air Force's Control and Reporting Centre in Sørreisa reports to it. Until 2016 the Royal Norwegian Air Force's radar installations were distributed between two CRCs. That year the CRC Mågerø was disbanded. In its place a wartime mobilization back-up CRC has been formed with a reduction in personnel from the around active 170 duty to about 50 air force home guardsmen . The SINDRE I radars are

5995-434: The army aviation inventory. The Bulgarian balloon observers also took part in the war. They were most active on the Dobrudzha Front, where aircraft activities were scarce (a German bomber squadron, flying missions against Bucharest and Constanţa : "Gotha" bombers accounted for the most flights). Near the Bulgarian city of Yambol an airship hangar was constructed to house German airships. The airship Schütte-Lanz SL 10

6104-418: The arrival of Polish aircraft, the first combat aircraft that entered Bulgarian service in 1937 were 12 Arado Ar 65 fighters, 12 Heinkel He 51 fighters, 12 Dornier Do 11 bombers and 12 Heinkel He 45 B reconnaissance aircraft. These machines were donated personally to Tsar Boris III by Hermann Göring . In 1937, during the traditional military parade of St. George's Day (National Day of Bravery and of

6213-469: The citizens of Sofia, the "Black" days were 14 and 24 November, 10 and 20 December 1943, and 10 January and 16, 24, 30 March and 17 April 1944 when large formations of B-17 and B-24 bombers ruined parts of the capital city including the central area. The Bulgarians also see successes. On 1 August 1943, an enormous armada of about 700 American Consolidated B-24 Liberator bombers flew over several Balkan countries their way to bomb "the taproot of German might",

6322-562: The city, which was until then considered nearly impregnable. During the First Balkan War Bulgarian aviation undertook 70 combat sorties, including 11 bombing raids, during the Second Balkan War it undertook 6 sorties. All in all, during both wars, there were over 230 aircraft sorties, including non-combat flights. In addition to the Albatros F.2, Bulgaria flew Blériot XI and XXI , Bristol Prier , Farman VII and Nieuport IV aircraft, as well as examples provided by Sommer and Voisin. The Tsardom of Bulgaria entered World War I as an ally of

6431-531: The commander of China Burma India Theater (CBI) and Deputy Allied Commander of South East Asia Command (SEAC). It was not until late 1944 that the land forces chain of command was clarified, after Stilwell was recalled to Washington. His overall role, and the CBI command were then split among three people: Lt Gen. Raymond Wheeler became Deputy Supreme Allied Commander South East Asia; Maj. Gen. Albert Wedemeyer became Chief of Staff to Chiang, and commander of US Forces, China Theater (USFCT). Lt Gen. Daniel Sultan

6540-449: The commanders of the 1st Belorussian , 1st , 2nd , 3rd and 4th Ukrainian Fronts of the Soviet Red Army - Zhukov , Rokossovsky , Konev , Malinovsky , Tolbukhin , Sokolovsky , Yeremenko , Petrov , Vatutin , etc. - acted in de facto capacity of Supreme Allied Commanders in that units of foreign Allied armies were incorporated into the fronts' order of battle and fought against the European Axis powers under their command during

6649-446: The commanders of the Red Army's 1st and 2nd Far Eastern fronts and Transbaikal Front - Vasilevsky (in overall command of all three fronts), Malinovsky, Meretskov and Purkayev - once again acted in de facto capacity of Supreme Allied Commanders as the Mongolian People's Army and partisans of the Chinese Northeast Anti-Japanese United Army and Korean People's Revolutionary Army were incorporated into their order of battle for

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6758-410: The constructor Herr Hermann Winter to help establish an aviation factory. Named The State's Aeroconstruction Atelliér or Darzhavna Aeroplanna Rabotilnitsa (DAR) the factory was initially managed by the first Bulgarian pilot to achieve an aerial victory – Mr. Marko Parvanov. The first aircraft types produced at the plant were the U-1 or "Uzounov-1" (an indigenous variant of the wartime German DFW C.V) and

6867-401: The country was assigned the new civil registration – LZ-??? (the latter three signs being a combination of capital letters). In 1933 the Bulgarian Council of Ministers approved the following wartime order of battle of the aviation: In 1934 the Aviation Regiment was renamed His Majesty's Air Troops, comprising a headquarters, with two army orlyaks (based at Bozhurishte and Plovdiv airfields),

6976-413: The creation of the command to execute Operation Overlord and ending in July 1945 shortly after the End of World War II in Europe . In 1951, Eisenhower would again be a Supreme Allied Commander, the first to hold the post for NATO (see next section). Field Marshal Henry Maitland Wilson succeeded Eisenhower in the Mediterranean theatre, given the title Supreme Allied Commander Mediterranean. Wilson

7085-401: The crew were captured. It would receive Bulgarian insignia and be used to bomb Allied positions at night. Four such sorties were flown before being shot down on 23 May 1918. A Nieuport 24bis and a Nieuport 27 were also captured. Lieutenant Vladimir Balan, a Bulgarian fighter pilot who had been flying with a German Jasta on the Western Front, was flying one of the Nieuports when he shot down

7194-462: The disbandment of the Warsaw Pact in 1991, both posts had always been held by a Marshal of the Soviet Union or Army General due to their expertise in commanding and coordinating forces of enormous sizes in the Soviet Armed Forces . In June 2003, the commands were reshuffled. One command was given responsibility for operations, and one for transforming the military components of the alliance to meet new challenges. In Europe, Allied Command Operations

7303-481: The first bombing attacks. Later that month the Bulgarian Aviation Corps was expanded to three Aeroplane Platoons. Foreign volunteers began flying operational sorties alongside Bulgarian pilots and carried out reconnaissance , leaflet-dropping and bombing missions. During the war at least three aircraft were shot down. Considerable help was received from the Russians in terms of aircraft, maintenance and training. Due to low aircraft serviceability and frequent accidents,

7412-457: The first new airplanes were acquired. Those were machines of the Potez VIII , Caudron C.59 , Hanriot HD.14 and Bristol Tourer Type 29; Avro 522 seaplanes were also procured. During the same year the Bulgarian airplane construction specialist Atanas Grigorov (who obtained his qualification at the "Albatroswerke – Berlin") assembled his seaplane, called "Grigorov-1". The aircraft made several test-flights, recording excellent characteristics, but

7521-454: The following: The Chaika Naval Seaplane station at Varna was under Naval command. On 27 November 1919 the Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine was signed. In accordance with the treaty the Tsardom of Bulgaria was banned from operating military aircraft under any form for the next 20 years. All Bulgarian airplanes, balloons, aviation equipment, weaponry and ammunition were to be destroyed under Allied control and all personnel demobilised. Under

7630-454: The functions of CAOC 5, CAOC 7, CAOC 8 and CAOC 10. CAOC Torrejón is responsible for the NATO airspace South of the Alps. The Turkish Air Force 's Combined Air Operations Centre (CAOC 6) in Eskişehir was deactivated in 2013 and its responsibilities were transferred to CAOC Torrejón in Spain. Turkey's Air Force fields a mix of HR-3000, AN/FPS-117, RAT-31SL and RAT-31DL radars, however the exact number of each of these radar and their location in

7739-439: The giant oil refineries at Ploiești , Romania. Termed Operation Tidal Wave , the aircraft flew over Bulgarian territory and Bulgarian fighter pilots Sub-lieutenant Peter Bochev (5 victories), Captain Tschudomir Toplodolski (4 victories), Lieutenant Stoyan Stoyanov (5 victories) and Sublieutenant Hristo Krastev (1 victory) inflicted heavy losses on the bombers. In total, about 23,000 enemy sorties were registered over Bulgaria in

7848-608: The last large offensive of the German Empire. He was the one who accepted the German cessation of hostilities in his private train. On 16 April 1918, at his own request, Foch was appointed "Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Armies". Despite his promotion 19 days earlier, and the subsequent Beauvais Conference of 3 April 1918, he was not provided a title. He remedied this by making up his own title and by writing to Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau to request it, which

7957-596: The last of the MiG-21s were put out of service and the attack and defence branches of the Bulgarian Air Force relied solely on MiG-29s. About 16 MiG-29 fighters were modernised in order to meet NATO standards. In January 2011, the Bulgarian Ministry of Defence issued a Request for Information (RFI) regarding the acquisition of eight multi-role fighters. The main competitors were expected to be

8066-485: The liberation of Northern China , Northeastern China and northern Korea from Japanese imperialist occupation. The term came into use again with the formation of NATO in 1949. In 1952, Allied Command Europe was established, led by Eisenhower. He became the Supreme Allied Commander (SACEUR). Soon afterwards, Allied Command Atlantic was established, at Norfolk, Virginia, under Lynde McCormick ,

8175-522: The merger of the air regiments with the aviation-technical and airfield service battalions, that were independent from them. Around 1995 – 1996 all the air regiments were transformed into air bases (brigade equivalents) and two main commands were formed – Air Defence Command (Командване за противовъздушна отбрана), merging the two air defence divisions and the Tactical Aviation Command (Командване Тактическа Авиация), by reorganisation of

8284-503: The near future is the Air Command and Control System (ACCS). Because of changing politics, NATO expanding and financial crises most European (NATO) countries are trying to cut defence budgets; as a direct result, many obsolete and outdated NATINADS facilities are phased out earlier. As of 2013, operational NATO radar sites in Europe are as follows: Allied Air Command (AIRCOM) is the central command of all NATO air forces on

8393-680: The new radars are as of 2018 unknown. The Royal Canadian Air Force's control centres and radar stations are part of the Canadian/American North American Aerospace Defense Command. The Croatian Air Force and Air Defense 's Airspace Surveillance Centre is headquartered in Podvornica and reports to CAOC Torrejón. The Czech Air Force 's Control and Reporting Centre is located in Hlavenec and reports to CAOC Uedem. The Royal Danish Air Force 's Combined Air Operations Centre (CAOC 1) in Finderup

8502-470: The number of missions flown was relatively low. Despite that, the Bulgarian airmen and their foreign allies were able to gather enough intelligence for the Army General Staff to help successfully capture of the city after a long siege . Although inflicting little physical damage, the bombs had a devastating effect on the defending Turkish garrison's morale and played a crucial part in the fall of

8611-549: The opportunity to acquire large numbers of ex-Czechoslovak aircraft from the Germans at a bargain price. Bulgaria purchased 78 Avia B-534 biplane fighters, 32 Avia B-71 twin-engine bombers (a license version of the Soviet SB bomber), 12 Bloch MB.200 twin-engine bombers, 62 Letov Š-328 reconnaissance aircraft and 28 Avia Bs.122 trainers. Deliveries of the second batch of Polish orders started in early 1939, with 33 PZL.43A light bombers and 8 PZL P.24F fighters delivered before

8720-452: The other branches, to protect territorial integrity. The Bulgarian Air Force is one of the oldest air forces in Europe and the world. In recent times it has been actively taking part in numerous NATO missions and exercises in Europe . The current commanding officer of the Bulgarian Air Force is Major General Dimitar Hristov Petrov. The Bulgarian Air Force dates back to the end of

8829-559: The outbreak of World War II and the factory produced mainly training planes, including the most-produced Bulgarian aircraft, the Laz-7. At the beginning of World War II , the combat air fleet comprised 374 machines in various roles. In addition orders were placed for 10 Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 fighters, 11 Dornier Do 17 M/P bombers, 6 Messerschmitt Bf 108 light liaison and utility aircraft, 24 Arado Ar 96 B-2 and 14 Bücker-Bestmann Bü 131 trainers. The Air Force order of battle comprised

8938-550: The patron-saint of the Bulgarian Armed Forces), military aircraft officially debuted as a part of the armed forces after a nearly two-decade hiatus. A month later Boris III himself presented the Bulgarian air regiments with their new combat flags at an official ceremony at Vrazhdebna Airfield. When the Third Reich occupied Czechoslovakia in 1938, the Czechoslovak air force was broken up. Bulgaria used

9047-521: The remainder were obsolete Avia B-534 biplanes. The ground-based air defenses were made up of only 8 88 mm (3.5 in) and 6 20 mm (0.79 in) AA guns. To help its new ally the 12th Army of the Wehrmacht offered support with its aircraft and air defence assets and provided 8 Freya-type radars dispersed throughout the country. A dispersed observation and reporting system was gradually developed. The first air strike against Bulgarian targets

9156-589: The southern Bulgarian coastline. At the end of 1917 the German station was transferred to the Bulgarian Navy. At the time of the armistice the Bulgarian fleet air arm comprised two seaplane stations, a forward replenishment base, three hangars, three workshops, ammunition warehouses and 10 seaplanes. After the cease-fire the machines were used for mine reconnaissance. At the end of 1919 they are transported by train to Bozhurishte Airfield to be scrapped along with

9265-490: The squadron leader of No. 17 Squadron RAF . Bulgarian naval aviators also played an important role in the air war. In 1912 Petty-Officers Lyapchev and Mikhailov were sent, along with other officers and seamen, to the German naval aviation forming facilities for training. Another group of naval personnel followed in the beginning of the First World War. Training was held at List, Nordenhai and Kiel. In November 1915

9374-492: The terms of the treaty any aircraft procured for civilian purposes had to be bought from the countries on the winning side. The combined engine power for any airplane (including multi-engined ones) was not to exceed 180 hp. In addition, the Bulgarian airspace was to be controlled by the allies and used according to the victorious countries' interests. In accordance with the treaty during 1920 no less than 70 airplanes , 110 aircraft engines , 3 air balloons, 76 machine guns ,

9483-721: The theatre, depending on the Supreme Commander's nationality. General of the United States' Army Dwight D. Eisenhower served in successive Supreme Allied Commander roles. Eisenhower was the Commander-in-Chief, Allied Force for the Mediterranean theatre . Eisenhower then served as Supreme Commander Allied Expeditionary Force (SCAEF) in the European theatre , starting in December 1943 with

9592-570: The trainers for the MiG-21 and MiG-23 also being removed. In 1998, four air bases were closed down: Gabrovnitsa Air Base , Balchik Air Base , Uzundzhovo Air Base and Shtraklevo Air Base . In 2000, further air bases were closed, with the Stara Zagora (which operated Mi-24s) Air Base being suspended. Then, in 2001 three more bases were closed down: Dobrich Air Base , Ravnets Air Base and Cheshnegirovo Air Base . In 2003, Dobroslavtsi Air Base

9701-573: The unit re-deployed to airfields near Belitsa and Xanthi , in modern Greece . Newly acquired German LVG aircraft were hastily pressed into action. Two more airfields were constructed near Udovo and Levunovo. The Allies began flying reconnaissance and bomber sorties against Bulgarian units on the Southern Balkan Front . Throughout World War I Bulgarian military aviation experienced a steady increase in both numbers and quality of aircraft; however, they remained inferior to those flown by

9810-402: The various operator consoles IDM-2, HMD-22, IDM-80) with commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) servers and workstations. In the first years 2000, the initial ASE capability was expanded with the possibility to run, thanks to the new hardware power, multiple site emulators on the same hardware, so the system was renamed into Multi-AEGIS Site Emulator (MASE) . The NATO system designed to replace MASE in

9919-551: The years 1943–1944. Bulgarian pilots fought an enemy outnumbering them by 10 to 50 times. Some of the best pilots were Lieutenant Stoyanov, Captain Toplodolski, and Sub-Lieutenants Bochev, Cvetkov, and Damev. 19 Bulgarian pilots died in this war against the Allies. The Allies lost 60 planes, shot down by Bulgarian fighters and about 430 airmen, 325 of which were taken as POWs. The Bulgarian Air Force, along with other branches of

10028-400: Was a tragedy for the little country. The city of Sofia and Bulgarian towns and villages were hit by air strikes in late 1943 and in 1944. In all, 187 inhabited places were attacked, 45,000 destructive and incendiary bombs were dropped. There were about 2,000 casualties, and about 4700 wounded, 12,000 damaged or ruined buildings and the total losses were estimated at nearly 24 billion dollars. For

10137-637: Was also closed down and the MiG-23s were withdrawn from service as they were more expensive to run than the MiG-21s. In February 2004 the Su-22s, which were stationed first in Dobrich then in Bezmer, were withdrawn. Since the early 2000s, Bulgaria has been trying actively to restructure its armed forces as a whole and a lot of attention has been placed on keeping the aging Soviet-era aircraft operational. In 2015,

10246-466: Was based at Glons , where also its main radar was located. The radar was deactivated in 2015 and the Centre moved to Beauvechain Air Base in 2020. The Belgian Control and Reporting Centre reports to CAOC Uedem in Germany and is also responsible for guarding the airspace of Luxembourg . At the new location the Control and Reporting Centre uses digital radar data of the civilian radars of Belgocontrol and

10355-1003: Was bought, and in 1912 the first indigenous balloon, Sofia-1, was constructed in Bulgaria using materials bought from Russia . In 1910, a Russian aircraft engineer, Boris Maslennikov, was invited to Bulgaria , where he presented his airplane, a modification of the French Farman III . Following his demonstration, assisted by Vasil Zlatarov over the hippodrome in Sofia , the Bulgarian Government decided to acquire airplanes for The Aviation Corps. In early 1912 thirteen army officers were sent abroad for training as pilots and orders were placed for five French, British and German airplanes. The officers sent to France completed their training first and returned to Bulgaria in July 1912. The same year Bulgaria received its first airplane –

10464-553: Was called the NATO Air Defence Ground Environment ( NADGE ). From 1960 NATO countries agreed to place all their air defence forces under the command of SACEUR in the event of war. These forces included command & control (C2) systems, radar installations, and Surface-to-Air (SAM) missile units as well as interceptor aircraft. By 1972 NADGE was converted into NATINADS consisting of 84 radar sites and associated Control Reporting Centers (CRC) and in

10573-490: Was carried out by 4 Yugoslav Dornier Do 17 Kb-1 on 6 April 1941 on the city of Kyustendil and its railway station killing 47 and injuring 95, mostly civilians. The air strikes intensified in the following days; British Royal Air Force units based in Greece participated in the attacks as well. At the end of April, the 2nd and 5th Bulgarian armies occupied Greek and Yugoslav territories according to an agreement with

10682-550: Was damaged beyond repair by a storm in the hangar where it was stationed. Also in 1924 the Aeroplane Section was expanded to an Aeroflight Directorate still under the Ministry of Railways, Postal Service and Telegraph. 1925 saw the Potez XVII , Bristol Lucifer and Macchi 2000/18 flying boat boosting the country's aircraft inventory. The Bulgarian government invited a group of German aircraft engineers, headed by

10791-848: Was deactivated in 2008 and reactivated as CAOC Uedem in 2013. CAOC Uedem is responsible for the NATO airspace North of the Alps. The HADR radars are a variant of the HR-3000 radar, while the RRP-117 radars are a variant of the AN/FPS-117. 1st Area Control Centre, inside Mount Chortiatis, with Marconi S-743D 2nd Area Control Centre, inside Mount Parnitha, with Marconi S-743D 9th Control and Warning Station Squadron, on Mount Pelion, with Marconi S-743D 10th Control and Warning Station Squadron, on Mount Chortiatis, with Marconi S-743D The Hellenic Air Force 's Combined Air Operations Centre (CAOC 7) at Larissa Air Base

10900-685: Was deactivated in 2008 and replaced at the same location by the Combined Air Operations Centre Finderup (CAOC F), which had responsibility for the airspaces of Iceland , Norway , Denmark and the United Kingdom . CAOC F was deactivated in 2013 and its responsibilities were transferred to CAOC Uedem in Germany. The national Danish Control and Reporting Centre is located at Karup Air Base and it reports to CAOC Uedem. The Pituffik Space Base in Greenland

11009-546: Was deactivated in 2013 and its responsibilities transferred to the CAOC Torrejón in Spain. The Hellenic Air Force fields two HR-3000, four AR-327 and six Marconi S-743D radar systems, however as of 2018 the air force is in the process of replacing some of its older systems with three RAT-31DL radars. The Hungarian Air Force 's Air Operations Centre is located in Veszprém and reports to CAOC Uedem. There are additional three radar companies with Soviet-era equipment subordinate to

11118-599: Was disguised as a two-seater, thus being classified as a trainer and returning to active service. On 5 July 1923 Bulgaria ratified the International Civil Aviation Treaty. From that moment on its air vehicles would carry a registration in the form B-B??? (the latter three signs being a combination of capital letters). In 1923 the first group of cadets, called "student-flyers" entered the Flying school at Vrazhdebna AF. The following year (1924)

11227-547: Was established at a new airfield close to the fighting. Intelligence about the Turkish army strength and dispositions in the Edirne was required, and on 16 October 1912 , two aviators performed a reconnaissance flight over the city in an Albatros F.2 biplane, also dropping two bombs. This was not only the first military mission performed by a Bulgarian aircraft, but also the first combat use of an aircraft in Europe and one of

11336-461: Was established from the former Allied Command Europe, and given responsibility for all NATO military operations worldwide. However, for legal reasons, SACEUR retained the traditional title including Europe. In the United States, SACLANT was decommissioned and Allied Command Transformation established. The headquarters of ACT is at the former SACLANT headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia , USA. Each has

11445-572: Was far away from the Allied Control Commission. The Czechoslovak company Aero Vodochody also built an aircraft factory near that city, but its models were not up to the requirements of the Bulgarian authorities. After an unsuccessful switch to automotive production, the plant was finally sold to the Italian Caproni company. The factory became popular as "Balgarski Kaproni" or "Bulgarian Caproni". The first examples of

11554-496: Was immediately granted. During World War II , the Allied leaders appointed Supreme Allied Commanders to manage the multi-nation, multi-discipline fighting forces for a particular theater of war . These Supreme Allied Commanders were given operational control over all air, land, and sea units in that theatre. In other cases, senior commanders were given the title Commander-in-Chief . These Supreme Allied Commanders were drawn from

11663-554: Was promoted, from deputy commander of CBI to commander of US Forces, India-Burma Theater (USFIBT) and commander of the NCAC. General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was appointed Supreme Allied Commander, South West Pacific Area (SWPA) on 18 April 1942. However, he preferred to use the title Commander-in-Chief. During the Allied occupation of Japan following the war, MacArthur held the title of Supreme Commander for

11772-695: Was succeeded by Field Marshal Harold Alexander , who continued in charge of those Allied forces until the end of the war. Admiral of the Fleet Lord Louis Mountbatten was Supreme Allied Commander South East Asia (SACSEA) throughout most of its existence. He replaced General Archibald Wavell . Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek was named the Supreme Commander of Allied forces in China Theater on 1942. However, US forces in China were usually overseen by General Joseph Stilwell ,

11881-615: Was the first to use it. According to documents of the time it was assigned to the Bulgarian Army, but was actually under German control. It was lost during a flight over the Black Sea in July 1916. In August 1916 the LZ 101 replaced it. After performing raids on targets in Romania and Greece it returned to Germany in August 1917. In November 1917 the naval airship L 59 arrived. That airship flew

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