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 Russian aircraft operational. In 2015 the last of 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 MoD issued a Request for Information (RFI) regarding the acquisition of 8 multi-role fighters. The main competitors were expected to be 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 8 new Gripen C/D fighters. The Bulgarian MoD extended the time limit for submittal of responses by two months due to the lack of responses from the other competitors.