The Bulgarian Navy ( bg, Военноморски сили на Република България, Voennomorski sili na Republika Balgariya, lit=Naval Forces of the Republic of Bulgaria) is the

navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...

of the

Republic of Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

and forms part of the

Bulgarian Armed Forces The Bulgarian Army ( bg, Българска армия, Bŭlgarska armiya) is the military of Bulgaria. The commander-in-chief is the president of Bulgaria. The Ministry of Defense is responsible for political leadership, while overall military ...

. It has been largely overlooked in the reforms that Bulgaria had to go through in order to comply with

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

standards, mostly because of the great expense involved and the fact that naval assaults are not considered to be a great concern for the country's security. That is why three of the four s (excluding ''Slava'') are now docked and have been out of operation for some time. The last one was decommissioned in November 2011. Only the more modern frigates, corvettes and missile crafts are on active duty. The Bulgarian Navy is centred in two main bases. One is near the city of

Varna Varna may refer to: Places Europe *Varna, Bulgaria, a city in Bulgaria **Varna Province **Varna Municipality ** Gulf of Varna **Lake Varna **Varna Necropolis *Vahrn, or Varna, a municipality in Italy *Varniai, a city in Lithuania * Varna (Šaba ...

. The other is by the village of Atia, near the city of

Burgas Burgas ( bg, Бургас, ), sometimes transliterated as ''Bourgas'', is the second largest city on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast in the region of Northern Thrace and the fourth-largest in Bulgaria after Sofia, Plovdiv, and Varna, with a pop ...

Operational history

First Balkan War

The Bulgarian Navy's first combat action was the 1912 Battle of Kaliakra during the

First Balkan War The First Balkan War ( sr, Први балкански рат, ''Prvi balkanski rat''; bg, Балканска война; el, Αʹ Βαλκανικός πόλεμος; tr, Birinci Balkan Savaşı) lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and invo ...

, when four Bulgarian

torpedo boat A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of ...

s attacked the Ottoman cruiser ''Hamidiye''; managed to score a hit, forcing ''Hamidiye'' to retreat back to Istanbul for emergency repairs.

Second Balkan War

The Bulgarian Navy

scuttled Scuttling is the deliberate sinking of a ship. Scuttling may be performed to dispose of an abandoned, old, or captured vessel; to prevent the vessel from becoming a navigation hazard; as an act of self-destruction to prevent the ship from being ...

its four Danube

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-ste ...

s during the

Second Balkan War The Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, on 16 ( O.S.) / 29 (N.S.) June 1913. Serbian and Greek armies r ...

, probably to avoid capture by the invading

Romanian Army The Romanian Land Forces ( ro, Forțele Terestre Române) is the army of Romania, and the main component of the Romanian Armed Forces. In recent years, full professionalisation and a major equipment overhaul have transformed the nature of the Lan ...

. The four gunboats were 400-600-ton vessels, with a top speed of and armed with two-to-four guns and two-to-four guns. They were still present on the Bulgarian Navy list in August 1916.

World War I

When Bulgaria entered

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

in 1915, its navy consisted mainly of a French-built torpedo gunboat called ''Nadezhda'' and six torpedo boats. It mainly engaged in mine warfare actions in the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

against the Russian Black Sea Fleet and allowed the Germans to station two

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare ro ...

s at

, one of which came under Bulgarian control in 1916 as '' Podvodnik No. 18''. Russian mines sank one Bulgarian torpedo boat and damaged one more during the war.

World War II

The Bulgarian Navy during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

supported the

Axis Powers The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...

in the Black Sea and consisted mainly of four obsolete ''Drazki''-class torpedo boats, five modern ''Lurrsen'' type motor torpedo boats and three formerly Dutch motor torpedo boats. Bulgaria and the Soviet Union were not at war with each other, but there was still little naval fighting with Soviet submarines operating in Bulgarian waters, its main action taking place in October 1941. The so-called ''Operation Varna'' consisted in the

minelaying A minelayer is any warship, submarine or military aircraft deploying explosive mines. Since World War I the term "minelayer" refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines. "Mine planting" was the term for installing contro ...

of the Bulgarian coast by the Romanian minelayers , '' Regele Carol I'' and ''Dacia'', escorted by Romanian '' Năluca'', '' Sborul'' and '' Smeul'', Romanian gunboats and ''Căpitan Dumitrescu'' and Bulgarian torpedo boats , ''Smeli'' and ''Hrabri''. The operation, lasting between 7 and 16 October 1941, was largely successful, as despite the loss of the Romanian auxiliary minelayer ''Regele Carol I'' to a Soviet mine, the five minefields laid by the Romanian minelayers along the Bulgarian coast are credited with the sinking of four Soviet submarines: '' S-34'', '' L-24'', '' Shch-211'' and '' Shch-210'', although the latter could have also been sunk by German aircraft or

depth-charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the water nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful and destructive hydraulic shock. Most depth charges use h ...

d by the Bulgarian patrol boats ''Belomorets'' and ''Chernomorets''. On 6 December 1941, ''Belomorets'' and ''Chernomorets'' depth-charged and sank the Soviet submarine ''Shch-204''. Soviet submarines also laid mines near the Bulgarian coast, the 2304-ton Bulgarian steamer ''Chipka'' being sunk off

by mines laid by the submarine ''L-4''. On 19 May 1943, the Bulgarian torpedo boat ''Smeli'' foundered between Varna and Burgas during a storm. Any hostilities ended when Bulgaria changed sides and joined the Allied powers in September 1944.

Cold War

In line with Soviet naming practices the navy of the

Bulgarian People's Army The Bulgarian People's Army ( bg, Българска народна армия, БНА, translit=Balgarska narodna armiya, BNA) was the army of the People's Republic of Bulgaria. It comprised the Bulgarian Land Forces, Air Force and Air Defence, ...

was called the Military Naval Fleet (''Военноморски флот'' (''ВМФ'')). The merchant marine, which was to mobilize in wartime in support of the regular navy was called Bulgarian Sea Fleet (''Български Морски Флот'' (''БМФ'')). In the 1970s the Burgas Naval Base relocated to Atia with a corresponding change in name. The Naval Fleet Staff was located in

Post Warsaw Pact

The

Bulgarian Communist Party The Bulgarian Communist Party (BCP; bg, Българска Комунистическа Партия (БКП), Balgarska komunisticheska partiya (BKP)) was the founding and ruling party of the People's Republic of Bulgaria from 1946 until 198 ...

was forced to give up its political monopoly on 10 November 1989 under the influence of the

Revolutions of 1989 The Revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, was a revolutionary wave that resulted in the end of most communist states in the world. Sometimes this revolutionary wave is also called the Fall of Nations or the Autumn of Nat ...

. With the restoration of freedom from the

Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist repub ...

entanglement, it became a member of

in 2004, and after several years of reforms, it joined the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...

and the single market in 2007, despite EU concerns over government corruption. In order to meet some of the NATO requirements, the Bulgarian government purchased a from Belgium in 2005. ''Wandelaar'' (F-912), built in 1977, was renamed to ''Drazki''. That same year the Bulgarian ship ''Smeli'' took part as a full NATO member for the first time in NATO OAE (''Operation Active Endeavour''). In 2006, following a decision of the Bulgarian National Assembly, ''Drazki'' deployed as part of the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon ( UNIFIL), patrolling the territorial waters of Lebanon under German command. This was the first time the Bulgarian Navy took part in an international peacekeeping operation. The Bulgarian government purchased two more ''Wielingen''-class frigates and one in 2007. On 21 July 2020 took place the official inauguration of the Maritime Coordination Center in Varna. This was an important step towards greater NATO and regional cooperation in the Black Sea region.

Command structure in 1989

Directly subordinate to Naval Staff

* Electronic Warfare Section (''Отделение РЕБ'') ** Independent Electronic Warfare Battalion type "NS" (''Отделен батальон тип "НС"'') (one company type N for jamming of enemy communications and one company type S for jamming of enemy targeting systems) * 8th Submarine Division, Varna Naval Base, with 4x

Romeo-class submarine The Project 633 class (known in the West by its NATO reporting name as the Romeo class) is a class of Soviet diesel-electric submarine, built between 1957 and 1961. A Chinese variant, Type 033, was built in China from 1962 to 1984. Project 633 ...

s (Two were decommissioned without replacement in 1990, one in 1992. Last one in 2011) ** 81 "Victory" (''"Победа"'', delivered in 1972, former Soviet S-57), 82 "Victoria" (''"Виктория"'', delivered in 1972, former Soviet S-212), 83 "Hope" (''"Надежда"'', delivered in 1983, former Soviet S-36), 84 "Glory" (''"Слава"'', delivered in 1985, former Soviet S-38) (traditional female names) * 2nd Coastal Missile Brigade, south of Varna, with 4K51 Rubezh anti-ship missiles * 10th Missile & Torpedo Boat Brigade, in

Sozopol Sozopol ( bg, Созопол , el, Σωζόπολη, translit=Sozopoli) is an ancient seaside town located 35 km south of Burgas on the southern Bulgarian Black Sea Coast. Today it is one of the major seaside resorts in the country, known for th ...

(mixed composition of the divisions, the torpedo boats had the dual role to attack enemy vessels with their torpedoes and to provide target acquisition for the missile boats) ** 122 (Commander's cutter, 10-ton Soviet project 371) ** 10th Missile & Torpedo Boat Division *** missile boats Project 205: 101 "Lightning" (''"Светкавица"'', delivered in 1982, former Soviet R-496, improved project 205U); 102 "Hurricane" (''"Ураган"'', delivered in 1977, former Soviet R-169, improved project 205U); 103 "Storm" (''"Буря"'', delivered in 1971, former Soviet R-176?, basic project 205) *** torpedo boats Project 206: 104 "Eagle" (''"Орел"''), 105 "Hawk" (''"Ястреб"''), 106 "Albatross" (''"Албатрос"'') ** 11th Missile & Torpedo Boat Division *** missile boats Project 205: 111 "Typhoon" (''"Тайфун"'', delivered in 1982, former Soviet R-496, improved project 205U); 112 "Thunder" (''"Гръм"'', delivered in 1977, former Soviet R-169, improved project 205U); 113 "Whirlwind" (''"Смерч"'', delivered in 1971, former Soviet R-176?, basic project 205) *** torpedo boats Project 206: 114 "

Snow leopard The snow leopard (''Panthera uncia''), also known as the ounce, is a felid in the genus '' Panthera'' native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List because the global population is es ...

" (''"Барс"''), 115 "Jaguar" (''"Ягуар"''), 116 "Panther" (''"Пантера"'') ** Coastal Base Sozopol (Брегова База Созопол, the brigade's logistic formation) *** 274 (fireboat project 364 of Soviet build) * 25th Signals Regiment, in Varna * 63rd Anti-submarine Helicopter Squadron, at Chayka (''Bulgarian'' for "''seagull''") Independent Naval Helicopter Base in

(in the Chayka suburb), flying 8x Mi-14PL anti-submarine helicopters (nr. 801, and nr. 810 of the original ten were lost), 1 x Mi-14BT (nr. 811; nr. 812 had been retired in 1986 and the minesweeping equipment removed from 811. Afterwards nr. 811 was used for transport tasks) and 1 x Ka-25C (Hormone-B, nr. 821, used for OTH targeting of the shore-based AShM systems). * 65th Maritime Special Reconnaissance Detachment (''65-ти Морски Специален Разузннавателен Отряд'' (''65ти МСРО'')), in Varna (Tihina) (Navy frogmen) * 130mm Coastal Artillery Training Battery, in Varna (in wartime the navy would mobilize the 1st (Varna) and 2nd (Burgas) Coastal Artillery Regiments with 5 batteries each) * People's Higher Naval School "

Nikola Vaptsarov Nikola Yonkov Vaptsarov ( bg, Никола Йонков Вапцаров; 7 December 1909 – 23 July 1942) was a Bulgarian poet, communist and revolutionary. Working most of his life as a machinist, he only wrote in his spare time. Despite the ...

", in Varna * 44th Surveillance and Signals Battalion -

Danube River The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

, in

Ruse Ruse may refer to: Places *Ruse, Bulgaria, a major city of Bulgaria **Ruse Municipality ** Ruse Province ** 19th MMC – Ruse, a constituency *Ruše, a town and municipality in north-eastern Slovenia * Ruše, Žalec, a small settlement in east-ce ...

(''44-ти батальон за наблюдение и свръзки - река Дунав'') (Radar and

SIGINT Signals intelligence (SIGINT) is intelligence-gathering by interception of '' signals'', whether communications between people (communications intelligence—abbreviated to COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly used in communication ...

) * Rear (''Тил'') (logistic services)

Varna Naval Base

* Varna Naval Base, in

** 2 commander's cutters of Project 371 ** 1st Anti-Submarine Ships Division *** Riga-class frigates: 11 "Bold" (''"Дръзки"'', delivered in 1957, former Soviet Black Sea Fleet SKR-67), 12 "Brave" (''"Смели"'', delivered in 1958, former Black Sea Fleet SKR-53, replaced on Sept 4 1989 by the

Koni-class frigate The Koni class is the NATO reporting name for an anti-submarine warfare frigate built by the Soviet Union. They were known in the Soviet Union as Project 1159. 14 were built in Zelenodolsk shipyard between 1975 and 1988. They were originally ...

11 "Brave", this caused renumbering of the Riga-class ships, but they were retired only a year later), 13 "Cheerful" (''"Бодри"'', delivered in 1985, former Soviet Baltic Fleet SKR "Kobchik") (note that "Bold", "Brave" and "Cheerful" are adjectives in plural) *** Poti-class small ASW ships: 14 "Brave" (''"Храбри"'', delivered in 1975, former Soviet MPK-106), 15 "Fearless" (''"Безстрашни", delivered in 1975, former Soviet MPK-125) (note that "Brave" and "Fearless" are adjectives in plural)'' ** 3rd Minesweepers Division *** 31 " Iskar" (''"Искър"''), 32 "Tsibar" (''"Цибър"''), 33 " Dobrotich" (''"Добротич"''), 34 "Captain-Lieutenant Kiril Minkov" (''"Капитан-лейтенант Кирил Минков"''), 35 "Captain-Lieutenant Evstati Vinarov" (''"Капитан-лейтенант Евстати Винаров"''), 36 "Captain I Rank Dimitar Paskalev" (''"Капитан I-ви ранг Димитър Паскалев"'') (minehunters project 257D/DME, Soviet second hand, NATO reporting name

Vanya Ваня (''Vanya''), a male diminutive of the Russian, Croatian, Serbian, Bulgarian and other Slavic given names Ivan. It is the Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian and other Slavic form of John itself derived from a Hebrew name, meaning "God is gracious" ...

) ** 5th Minesweepers Division (Coastal Base

Balchik Balchik ( bg, Балчик ; ro, Balcic) is a Black Sea coastal town and seaside resort in the Southern Dobruja area of northeastern Bulgaria. It is in Dobrich Province, 35 km southeast of Dobrich and 42 km northeast of Varna. It spr ...

) *** 51 - 56 (minehunters of project 1259.2 project "

Malachite Malachite is a copper carbonate hydroxide mineral, with the formula Cu2CO3(OH)2. This opaque, green-banded mineral crystallizes in the monoclinic crystal system, and most often forms botryoidal, fibrous, or stalagmitic masses, in fracture ...

", NATO reporting name Olya, built in Michurin), 2 auxiliary cutters of project 501 (former auxiliary minesweeping boats) and a commander's cutter of project 371 ** 18th Independent Division of Special Purpose Ships (former 18th Harbour Area Security Ships, includes supply, rescue and support ships and small patrol craft) *** 300 " General Vladimir Zaimov" (''"Генерал Владимир Заимов"'') (Command ship Bulgarian project 589, built in

, also used for

of the Turkish Navy) *** 221 "

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but slightly less than one-thousandth t ...

" (''"Юпитер"'') (

East German East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

fire-/ tugboat project 700, used as fireboat, salvage tugboat, submarine rescue ship and target tow for the coastal artillery and ships) *** 401 "Admiral Branimir Ormanov" (''"Адмирал Бранимир Орманов"'') (Polish project 861-МВ hydrographic ship, built in 1977) *** 206 "Captain I Rank Dimitar Dobrev" (''"Капитан І ранг Димитър Добрев"'') (Polish project 1799 (class 130 for the Soviet Navy) degaussing ship, built in 1988, the modern Polish Navy ship

ORP Kontradmirał Xawery Czernicki ORP ''Kontradmirał Xawery Czernicki'' is a mine countermeasure forces command vessel of the Polish Navy. The ship's design was based on a hull of the 130 class degaussing station planned by the Construction Bureau of the Refurbishing Shipyard in ...

is a development on the same hull type) *** 311 "Anton Ivanov", later "Mitsar" and "Anlain" (''"Антон Иванов"'', ''"Мицар"'', ''"Анлайн"'', Auxiliary transport (replenishment) ship Bulgarian project 102, built in

in 1979, main task was to provide en route replenishment for the Bulgarian ships, committed to the Soviet Navy Operational Mediterranean Squadron) *** 223 (diving support boat Bulgarian project 245, built in

in 1980) *** 121, 215 and 216 (multirole motor cutters Bulgarian project 160, built in

) *** 1 fireboat type L26, pennant number changed several times (built in Rostock, GDR in 1954-55) *** 218 and 219 (auxiliary cutters, former minesweeping boats type R376 "Sever") ** 55th Surveillance and Signals Battalion (''55-ти батальон за наблюдение и свръзки'') (Radar and

) ** Repair Workshop ** Shore based support units

Atia Naval Base

* Atia Naval Base, east of

** 2 commander's cutters of project 371 ** 4th Small Anti-Submarine Ships Division *** Poti-class small ASW ships: 41 "Flying" (''"Летящи"'', delivered in 1982, former Soviet MPK-77), 42 "Vigilant" (''"Бдителни"'', delivered in 1982, former Soviet MPK-148), 43 "Persistent" (''"Напористи"'', delivered in 1982, former Soviet MPK-109), 44 "Stern (Rigorous)" (''"Строги"'', delivered in 1975 to Varna, transferred in 1982 to Burgas, former Soviet MPK-59) (note that "Flying", "Vigilant", "Persistent" and "Rigorous" are adjectives in plural) ** 6th Minesweepers Division *** 61 "Breeze" (''"Бриз"''), 62 "Squall" (''"Шквал"''), 63 "Surf" (''"Прибой"''), 64 "Storm" (''"Щорм"'') (minehunters project 1265 " Yakhont") *** 65, 66, 67, 68 (minesweepers project 1258E "Korund", NATO reporting name Yevgenya) ** 7th Landing Ships Division *** 701 "

Sirius Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky. Its name is derived from the Greek word , or , meaning 'glowing' or 'scorching'. The star is designated α Canis Majoris, Latinized to Alpha Canis Majoris, and abbreviated Alpha CM ...

" (''"Сириус"'') and 702 "

Antares Antares is the brightest star in the constellation of Scorpius. It has the Bayer designation α Scorpii, which is Latinised to Alpha Scorpii. Often referred to as "the heart of the scorpion", Antares is flanked by σ Scorpii and τ ...

" (''"Антарес"'') (Polish project 770Е medium tank landing ships, NATO reporting name Polnocny) *** 703 - 712 (Soviet project 106K small tank landing ship and auxiliary minelayers, practically self-propelled landing barges, built in

and

, NATO reporting name Vydra) *** (another 14 project 106K small tank landing ships and auxiliary minelayers mothballed after construction and stored by Bulgarian Sea Fleet (the state-owned merchant marine) as wartime mobilization stock) ** 96th Independent Division of Special Purpose Ships (former 96th Harbour Area Security Ships, includes supply, rescue and support ships and small patrol craft) *** 301 "Captain Kiril Halachev" (''"Капитан Кирил Халачев"'') (Command ship Bulgarian project 589, built in

) *** 302 "

Bolshevik The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...

" (''"Болшевик"'', Auxiliary transport (replenishment) ship Bulgarian project 102, built in

in 1987, main task was to provide en route replenishment for the Bulgarian ships, committed to the Soviet Navy Operational Mediterranean Squadron) *** 323 (diving support boat Bulgarian project 245, built in

in 1980) *** 331 (torpedo salvage boat Bulgarian project 205, built in

in 1980) *** 312 and 313 (multirole motor cutters Bulgarian project 160, built in

) *** 1 fireboat type L26, pennant number changed several times (built in Rostock, GDR in 1954-55) *** 57 and 58 (auxiliary cutters, former minesweeping boats type R376 "Sever") ** 66th Surveillance and Signals Battalion (''66-ти батальон за наблюдение и свръзки'') (Radar and

) ** Coastal Radiolocation Station "Periscope I" (

ELINT Signals intelligence (SIGINT) is intelligence-gathering by interception of '' signals'', whether communications between people (communications intelligence—abbreviated to COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly used in communication ...

unit) ** Repair Workshop ** Shore based support units

Naval Equipment

In 1989 the people's navy's inventory consisted of: * 4x Romeo-class submarines (all decommissioned with last in 2011) * 3x Riga-class frigates (One decommissioned in 1989, two in 1990) * 1x Koni-class frigate (Commissioned in December 1989) * 6x Poti-class

anti-submarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are t ...

corvettes * 1x Pauk-class corvette (Commissioned in 1989, a second Pauk-class corvette was transferred from the Soviet Union in 1990) * 6x Osa-class missile boats * 6x Shershen-class torpedo boats * 2x Polnocny-class landing ships * 6x Vanya-class minesweepers * 4x Yevgenya-class minesweepers * 4x Sonya-class minesweepers * 6x Olya-class minesweepers * 34x R376 type "Yaroslavets" axillary cutters in various configurations

Structure

Verni and Tsezar' Kunikov in Varna, 2009

* Naval Forces Command,

** Naval Forces Staff ** Naval Operations Center ** Coastal Fundamental System for CIS Support ** Coastal Information Detachment ** Independent Electronic Surveillance Detachment ** Command, Control and Communications Units ** Naval Base Command *** Naval Base Staff *** Naval Base Location

*** Naval Base Location Atia *** Repair and Maintenance Center *** Armament and Equipment Storage *** Ship Divisions **** 1st Patrol Ships Division **** 3rd Mine Counter-Measure Division **** 4th Patrol Ships Division **** 6th Mine Counter-Measure Division **** 18th Support Ships Division **** 96th Support Ships Division *** 2nd Coastal Anti-Ship Missile and Artillery Battalion ** Independent Naval Helicopter Air Base ''"Chayka"'' ** 63rd Naval Special Forces Reconnaissance Detachment ''"Black Sea Sharks"'' ** Hydrographical Service of the Naval Forces ** Equipment Storage Base of the Naval Forces ** Military Police Company of the Naval Forces Command A "Division" is the equivalent of land forces battalion or air force squadron as the Bulgarian Navy follows the Russian naval tradition, according to which an "Operational Squadron" or "Оперативная эскадра" is a temporary formation, an equivalent of a land forces division and in modern times a "Squadron" of the Russian Navy is an equivalent of a land forces corps. According to the reform plans envisioned in the White Paper on Defence 2010, the two naval bases would be merged into one with two base facilities in Varna and Burgas. The manpower of the Navy would account to about 3,400 seamen. The ordered Eurocopter AS565 MB Panther helicopters were reduced from six to three units. Between 2011 and 2020 the naval "Longterm Investment Plan" should come into action, providing the sea arm of the Bulgarian military with modernised ships and new equipment.

Ships

The Bulgarian Navy will modernise three of its ''Wielingen''-class frigates in the future. The frigates will be equipped with landing pads, allowing helicopters to land and take off from the ships' decks. The list does not include vessels assigned to the border police. The Bulgarian Ministry of Defense signed a contract on 12/11/2020 with

Lürssen Lürssen (or Lürssen Werft) is a German shipyard with headquarters in Bremen-Vegesack and shipbuilding facilities in Lemwerder, Berne and Bremen-Fähr-Lobbendorf. Lürssen designs and constructs yachts, naval ships and special vessels. Tradi ...

Werft Germany to build two patrol boats for the Bulgarian Navy. The boats will be built by the Bulgarian MTG Dolphin shipyard in Varna and delivered in 2025 and 2026 with the 984M lev (approximately €503M) price also including training.

Naval aviation

Chayka Naval Air Base 2

Eurocopter AS565 Panther The Eurocopter (now Airbus Helicopters) AS565 Panther is the military version of the Eurocopter AS365 Dauphin medium-weight multi-purpose twin-engine helicopter. The Panther is used for a wide range of military roles, including combat assault, f ...

(6 originally ordered, 3 delivered, 3 later canceled, 1 written off) 1 Eurocopter AS365 Dauphin delivered in late 2019 Bulgarian Navy Air Base Chaika Emblem

* on 9 June 2017 during a training mission of artillery fire against surface targets as a part of the ''"Black Sea-2017"'' exercise of the Bulgarian Navy, a Panther helicopter crashed in the water, killing the commander and injuring the other two officers on board. The helicopter's main rotor made contact with the fore flagpole of the frigate BGS-41 ''Drazki'', after which it crashed into the sea. The crew commander suffered heavy injuries upon the crash, causing his death. The other two crew members suffered minor injuries, mainly by inhaling gases caused after the crash.) The helicopter has been written off and the remaining two units have been grounded for a month on 10 June. After the helicopter struck the flagpole it became increasingly unstable and the commander Capt. Georgi Anastasov decided to turn back to the frigate and attempt an emergency landing in the water nearby, maximizing the chances for a rapid emergency recovery by the surface ships nearby. According to Ministry of Defence and Navy officials his actions have directly contributed to the saving of the other two officers on board with only minor injuries and for his efforts he has been promoted to Major posthumously. 3

Mil Mi-14 The Mil Mi-14 (russian: Миль Ми-14, NATO reporting name: Haze) is a Soviet shore-based nuclear-capable amphibious anti-submarine helicopter derived from the earlier Mi-8. Design and development Formal development of an anti-submarine warf ...

(stored in non-flyworthy condition)

Equipment

Ranks

Commissioned officer ranks

The rank insignia of commissioned officers.

Other ranks

The rank insignia of non-commissioned officers and

enlisted personnel An enlisted rank (also known as an enlisted grade or enlisted rate) is, in some armed services, any rank below that of a commissioned officer. The term can be inclusive of non-commissioned officers or warrant officers, except in United States mi ...

References

Bibliography

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External links

Official site of the Bulgarian Naval Forces (Bulgarian)Official site of the Bulgarian Naval Forces (English)
{{Navies in Europe Military units and formations established in 1879