On November 15, 1910, Russian pilot Boris Maslenikov carried out the first airplane flight in Bulgaria. He took off in a Farman-type aircraft from an improvised airfield near Sofia. In the days that followed, several more demonstration flights were performed, one of which included members of the royal family—Tsar Ferdinand I, Crown Prince Boris, and Prince Kiril.
The sensational event sparked tremendous interest among the citizens of Sofia and within Bulgarian military circles. A large-scale program for the development of Bulgarian aviation was drawn up. These efforts bore fruit only two years later—in 1912—when, during the First Balkan War, Bulgarian military pilots achieved their first aerial victories.
Over the years, aircraft manufacturing in Bulgaria has continued to develop, and its history is kept alive in two museums—the Aviation Museum in Krumovo (near Plovdiv) and the Aviation Museum in Burgas.
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Published and translated by Kostadin Atanasov
Photo: sofiahistorymuseum.bg
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