Balkan Bulgarian Airlines Flight 107
Balkan Bulgarian Airlines Flight 107 crashed on March 16, 1978, on a flight from Sofia to Warsaw. The Tupolev Tu-134, tail number LZ-TUB, carried 73 people (66 passengers and 7 crew). It went down near Gabare, close to Byala Slatina, about 130 km northeast of Sofia, killing everyone on board. It remains Bulgaria’s deadliest aviation accident.
The exact cause was never confirmed. Official Bulgarian reports blamed a malfunction of the electrical system, but many questions about the crash were left unanswered.
A 2024 investigation in Biograph magazine, based on testimonies from former state security officers, suggested there may have been two unlisted passengers on board who were likely trained by the Bulgarian secret service, possibly connected to Arab countries. The article says the plane may have been hijacked and crashed due to in-flight fighting, a theory not officially acknowledged and widely disputed.
Details of the flight indicate it took off from Sofia, climbed to about 8,850 meters, then changed course and began an abnormal descent. It crashed within about 10 minutes of takeoff while traveling at roughly 800 km/h, with 11 tons of fuel on board.
Among the victims were 37 Polish passengers, 27 Bulgarians, 2 Britons, and the seven crew members. Notable victims included members of Poland’s national track cycling team and Bulgaria’s rhythmic gymnastics team, as well as Polish Vice-Minister of Culture Janusz Wilhelmi and Bulgarian footballer Georgi Dimitrov.
A marble monument near Gabare commemorates the crash. In 2016, a memorial plaque was unveiled at Arena Pruszków in Poland to honor the victims.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 11:48 (CET).