Bulgaria has officially launched the large-scale international flight exercise European Spartan Exercise 2025 (ESE 25) at Bezmer Air Base. The exercise, running until October 3, brings together air force personnel from Italy, Spain, Greece, and Lithuania to conduct complex tactical operations in Bulgarian airspace. Greece is joining as a full participant this year, while Slovenia, which recently acquired Spartan aircraft, is observing with plans to participate fully next year. The Bulgarian Air Force is contributing four Spartan aircraft, which have previously been deployed on missions in Afghanistan, Iraq, Mali, and during humanitarian evacuations in the COVID-19 pandemic. Colonel Milen Dimitrov, commander of Bezmer Air Base, warned that low-altitude flights will be conducted in multiple regions, including Cheshnegirovo and Chernogorovo, and potentially in northern mountainous areas.