On August 8, a drone exploded in Bulgaria after entering the country’s airspace from the direction of the Romanian border. It fell 100 meters from the border on Bulgarian territory and about one kilometer from a compressor station of the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline.
This was reported by the Bulgarian outlet Sega, citing a statement by Prime Minister Rumen Radev following an emergency meeting of the Security Council under the Council of Ministers.
According to him, the incident occurred at around 08:10. The drone exploded near a Romanian compressor station, about 200 meters from the former border crossing between Bulgaria and Romania and 1,000 meters from the Bulgarian compressor station of the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline.
Border police recorded a loud noise and black smoke, after which an explosion was heard in the General Toshevo area. The drone fell in a sunflower field. The area was cordoned off. There were no injuries, and no buildings or infrastructure were damaged.
The origin of the drone is still being established because its wreckage was badly burned. At the same time, Radev said it was not an amateur drone, as it was carrying a large amount of explosives.
The drone was not detected in either Romanian or Bulgarian airspace. There was also no information about it from NATO’s Combined Air Operations Centre in Torrejón, which monitors the airspace over Southern Europe.
According to Radev, small drones are difficult to detect, especially when they fly at low altitude.
Bulgaria’s Ministry of Defence is already strengthening security measures in the area, including electronic warfare systems and surface-to-air missile systems.
Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said that until July 31, the area had been guarded by MiG-29 aircraft. From 09:00 on July 31, due to events in Romania, airspace surveillance was strengthened: surface-to-air missile systems, Cougar helicopters and Su-25 aircraft were deployed to the area, along with additional radar stations.
Radev also said the incident would be discussed next week at a meeting of the North Atlantic Council. Poland is expected to present information about missiles and drones shot down over its territory, Romania about drone incidents, and Bulgaria about the current situation.
