Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Investigators into the fatal crash in which 2 military pilots were killed:

Seven seconds of communication missing between tower and the L-39 ZA aircraft

Photo: MoD

Right before the two military pilots training for an air show crashed their plane in the critical seven seconds of the flight there was no communication between the tower and the plane. This is shown by the recordings of the conversations between the Flight control and the crew, BNT reported.


Major Petko Dimitrov and 1st Lieutenant Ventsislav Dunkin were killed on September 13 this year when their L-39 ZA aircraft crashed during training for an air show to mark the 20th anniversary of Bulgaria's accession to NATO.


The report by the Military Police and the Ministry of Defence has been handed over to the Military District Prosecutor's Office in Plovdiv. An aviation-technical forensic examination is to be appointed to establish the correctness of the actions of the flight participants both in the plane and on the ground.
When asked who should have made the decision to abort the manoeuvre, Hristo Anchev replied: "The flight operations director has the authority to abort the maneuver if he decides that it should not be continued, that it is extremely dangerous."
Work on the report will begin next week and will include a detailed examination of the wreckage of the crashed aircraft and the testimony of more than 30 witnesses who have been interviewed.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Ex-PM Boyko Borisov: Not a single Bulgarian soldier will go to Ukraine

No Bulgarian soldier will go to Ukraine. This was stated by GERB leader and ex-premier Boyko Borisov in a video statement on his Facebook page. He pointed out that this was a decision of GERB and the party's parliamentary group from June 2024 and is..

published on 2/18/25 3:32 PM
At the official opening of the 10th International Agricultural Exhibition AGRA in Plovdiv

4% of Bulgaria's GDP is created by the agricultural sector

The agriculture sector in Bulgaria maintains its stability, providing employment to 6% of the population and forming about 4% of the country's GDP. This is shown by current data on the state of the sector, presented by the Minister of Agriculture..

published on 2/18/25 3:14 PM
Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Zafirov

Council of Ministers has not discussed Bulgarian participation in peacekeeping forces in Ukraine

The Bulgarian Council of Ministers has not discussed the hypothesis of Bulgaria's possible participation in peacekeeping forces in Ukraine. This was stated to the media by Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) Atanas..

published on 2/18/25 2:29 PM