Bulgaria stands to lose the servicing agreement for all of its MiG-29 multirole fighter jets after making a servicing contract with Poland, which does not have a license to carry out the repairs, Sputnik news agency reported.

Bulgaria's plan to have Poland rather than Russia provide maintenance for its MiG-29 fighters endangers the future of the country's air force, according to retired air force head General Miho Mihov.

Poland and Bulgaria signed a deal to renovate the planes in August, without the consultation of all members of its Defense Council, the consultative body of its Ministry of Defense. Mihov noted that because Poland does not have a license to service Bulgarian MiG-29 fighters, the repairs will void the agreement between Russia and Bulgaria on obligatory servicing of the planes.

Bulgaria has a total of 16 MiG-29 fighter jets, of which four are operational according to Poland's TVN24 television. Other than the Russian-made MiG-29 aircraft, Bulgaria also has three aging, Soviet-made MiG-21s.