Accidents and Incidents
As of August 2012, Aviation Safety Network records 15 occurrences and four hijackings for Balkan, and two fatal accidents plus one hijacking for TABSO. Only events that led to fatalities, wrote off the aircraft involved, or both, are presented in the list below.
| Date | Location | Airline | Aircraft | Tail number | Aircraft damage | Fatalities | Description | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01948-06-3030 June 1948 | Istanbul | TABSO | Ju-52 | Unknown | None | 70001000000000000001 | The aircraft was hijacked en route a domestic scheduled Varna–Sofia passenger service and flown to Istanbul. | |
| 01952-11-2222 November 1952 | Sofia | TABSO | Li-2P | LZ-TUE | W/O | 700130000000000000030/30 | Struck mountainous terrain shortly after departing Vrazhdebna Airport. It was due to operate a domestic scheduled Sofia–Gorna Orechovitsa–Varna passenger service. | |
| 01966-11-2424 November 1966 | Bratislava | TABSO | Il-18V | LZ-BEN | W/O | 700182000000000000082/82 | With Berlin as final destination, the aircraft was operating the Budapest–Prague leg of Flight 101. Bad weather at Prague forced a temporary diversion to Bratislava. The airplane was cleared to continue to Prague as weather there improved, but it crashed shortly after takeoff from Ivanka Airport. | |
| Unknown | Sofia | Balkan | Avia 14 | LZ-ILG | W/O | 50000000000000000000 | Destroyed while undergoing maintenance at Vrazhdebna Airport. | |
| Unknown | Provadia | Balkan | Avia 14 Super | LZ-ILF | W/O | Unknown | Crashed under unspecified circumstances. | |
| 01971-01-1818 January 1971 | Zurich | Balkan | Il-18D | LZ-BED | W/O | 700145000000000000045/47 | Inbound from Paris on an international scheduled passenger service, the aircraft approached Zurich Airport in fog below the glideslope. It crashed and burst into flames, 0.7 kilometres (0.43 mi) north of the airport, when both left wingtip and landing gear contacted the ground. | |
| 01971-12-2121 December 1971 | Sofia | Balkan | Il-18 | Unknown | Unknown | 700128000000000000028/73 | Crashed on takeoff. | |
| 01972-11-044 November 1972 | Cruncha | Balkan | Il-14P | LZ-ILA | W/O | 700135000000000000035/35 | The aircraft was completing a domestic scheduled Bourgas–Sofia passenger service when it flew into mountainous terrain, in adverse weather, on approach to Vrazhdebna Airport. | |
| 01973-03-033 March 1973 | Moscow | Balkan | Il-18V | LZ-BEM | W/O | 700125000000000000025/25 | Nosedived during a second approach attempt to Sheremetyevo Airport, crashing and bursting into flames, probably because of tail icing. The aircraft was operating an international scheduled Sofia–Moscow passenger service as Flight 307. | |
| 01975-11-2222 November 1975 | Sofia | Balkan | An-24B | LZ-ANA | W/O | 70003000000000000003/45 | Unable to gain height following takeoff from Vrazhdebna Airport, the aircraft slid down a ravine and ended up in the Iskar River. | |
| 01975-12-01December 1975 | Kufrah | Balkan | An-12B | LZ-BAA | W/O | 50000000000000000000 | Overran the runway on landing at Kufrah Airport. | |
| 01978-03-1616 March 1978 | Gabare | Balkan | Tu-134 | LZ-TUB | W/O | 700173000000000000073/73 | Struck the ground while en route due to an abnormal descent. It was flying an international scheduled Sofia–Warsaw passenger service. | |
| 01978-03-2323 March 1978 | Damascus | Balkan | Tu-154 | LZ-BTB | W/O | 70004000000000000004/4 | Hit high ground 22.5 kilometres (14.0 mi) northeast of Damascus on approach to the city airport. | |
| 01984-01-1010 January 1984 | Sofia | Balkan | Tu-134A | LZ-TUR | W/O | 700150000000000000050/50 | Inbound from Berlin on an international scheduled passenger service, the aircraft struck power lines on approach to Vrazhdebna Airport in heavy snow, crashing 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) short of the runway. | |
| 01984-06-1616 June 1984 | Sana'a | Balkan | Il-18V | LZ-BEP | W/O | 50000000000000000000/18 | Overran the runway at Sana'a International Airport following a nosegear-first landing. | |
| 01984-08-2424 August 1984 | Addis Ababa | Balkan | An-12B | LZ-BAD | W/O | 50000000000000000000/9 | Overran the runway on landing at Bole International Airport. | |
| 01992-06-055 June 1992 | Varna | Balkan | Tu-154B | LZ-BTD | W/O | 50000000000000000000/130 | The aircraft made a long landing at Varna Airport and the nosegear collapsed as it ran off the runway. The aircraft was completing an international non-scheduled Stockholm–Varna passenger service. | |
| 01992-07-2828 July 1992 | Sofia | Balkan | An-24B | LZ-ANN | W/O | 50000000000000000000 | Damaged by a crane at Sofia Airport. |
Read more about this topic: Balkan Bulgarian Airlines
Famous quotes containing the words accidents and/or incidents:
“The day-laborer is reckoned as standing at the foot of the social scale, yet he is saturated with the laws of the world. His measures are the hours; morning and night, solstice and equinox, geometry, astronomy, and all the lovely accidents of nature play through his mind.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“An element of exaggeration clings to the popular judgment: great vices are made greater, great virtues greater also; interesting incidents are made more interesting, softer legends more soft.”
—Walter Bagehot (1826–1877)