Category: Media center

On 22 March BULATSA joins the global initiative “Earth Hour” by turning off the facade lighting of the building of the United Air Traffic Control Centre and the administrative buildings of the airport centres, between 8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.

“Earth Hour” is a global initiative organized by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) with the aim of raising awareness about the issues related to the protection of the Earth and the need to take action against climate change.

The initiative is held annually at the end of March, when millions of people around the world symbolically turn off the lights in their homes, and iconic buildings darken their facades, as an expression of concern for the future of the planet. BULATSA also calls on its employees to reduce or turn off the lights in their homes, as an expression of solidarity with the global commitment to protecting nature and combating climate change.

In this way, we will show that despite the climate challenges we face today, we remain united in the cause of protecting our common home – the Earth.

The first conference “Women in Aviation – Sustainable Development and Recruitment” was held in Sofia.

The number of women in aviation – civil and military – is ever growing and those who have chosen this professional path are categorical that their work is not only responsible but also inspiring. That is why it is also attractive to young girls who dream of being pilots or air traffic controllers. The forum was hosted by Bulgarian Air Traffic Services Authority (BULATSA), and it was attended by representatives of: BULATSA; Directorate General Civil Aviation Administration (DG CAA); Bulgarian Air Force; airline Bulgaria Air and other civil aviation companies; SOF Connect – the operator of Vasil Levski Airport – Sofia; Eurocontrol – the organization that controls the flights over Europe and many others. The aim of the conference is to promote the achievements of women in Bulgarian aviation, the challenges they face, as well as to attract young people towards this profession.

Statistics show that for 2024 the traffic over Bulgaria has reached a record high level for the recent years – over one million overflying aircraft. They are serviced by 328 air traffic controllers, of which more than 40 are women. The jump in the number of flights requires an increase in personnel, both in our country and at the European level. It was pointed out that in the next 20 years Europe will need 140 000 pilots, 600 000 aviation technicians, etc. BULATSA highlighted that among the company’s priorities is the attraction of third and fourth year students, so that they are oriented towards aviation professions from an early age. Stefania Nikolova-Tsankova, a representative of Eurocontrol, added that a working European practice is to introduce aviation professions to students in the upper grades of high schools.

BULATSA reminded that the candidates for Air Traffic Controller must be up to 30 years old, have a bachelor’s degree and be fluent in English. They undergo a multi-level training – theory and practice, working in the air traffic control room with a personal mentor for 10 months. People with engineering degrees are also being sought, for whom there is no age limit. “The role of mentors is extremely important – they teach, but they also constantly learn,” said Ivan Iliev, an air traffic controller and head of Programs and Strategies Department at BULATSA. He has trained Tereza Mihaylova, who now works at Eurocontrol. The two talked about the common path that the newcomers and their mentors take.

“We are making efforts to introduce the profession to more women – to find out about the application requirements and to join our team. The profession is prestigious, interesting and well-paid,” said Kamen Yordanov, head of Training Center Department at BULATSA. He announced that a complete renovation of the flight control room is imminent, to make it one of the most modern in Europe.

Betina Dikova and Desislava Dimitrova told the forum participants about their journeys. Betina had trained as a fighter pilot but chose the path of an air traffic controller in civil aviation, while Desislava had graduated from the National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts but later decided to complete the training and has been taking care of air traffic services over Bulgaria for several years now.

About 38% of all employees of SOF Connect – the operator of Vasil Levski Airport in Sofia, are women, said Antoaneta Stoyanova, Director of Sustainable Development at the company. According to her, 40% of the management positions in the company are held by women.

Statistics were also provided by Anelia Marinova, the first woman – director of Directorate General Civil Aviation Administration. She noted that the number of employees in the directorate is 124, of which 59 are women. Marinova also shared an interesting world fact: the highest number of female pilots is in India -13%.

Lieutenant Colonel Svetlana Goranova from the Air Force shared her experience and talked about the role of women in the Air Force. She reminded that in 2025 will be 30 years since the first admission of women to the Air Force Schools for the needs of military aviation.

Zlatina Batishteva, co-pilot of Airbus A220 aircraft at Bulgaria Air, also spoke about her work. She shared that she has been flying on such a machine for over a year and a half and added that she was part of the crew that delivered one of the company’s seven new aircraft, which flew from Canada to Sofia on a 10-hour flight.

The enormous role of building effective partnership relations of BULATSA at local and European level was emphasized by Alexandra Svrakova – expert in the European Programs, Projects and Strategies Directorate at BULATSA. She highlighted the successes so far in implementing policies for equality and inclusion with the aim of competitiveness of the sector.

The participants in the forum decided to make the conference a tradition and to hold it annually in the eve of the International Women’s Day on 8 March.

The air traffic controller profession is now part of the exhibits at TechnoMagicLand, which is the first STEAM center in Bulgaria.

The latest experiment in the exhibition from the “Aeronautics” section was created by the center’s team with the support of BULATSA and is now available to all those who wish to learn more about this responsible and exciting profession.

Through a game-based approach, visitors will be able to land a plane on the runway and experience the responsibility of an air traffic controller in the airport control tower. Before stepping up to the control panel, however, they will have to pass two special online tests to check whether they possess the necessary capabilities.

The mission of TechnoMagicLand is to ignite young people’s interest in technology and natural sciences by using two of the most current approaches in modern education – learning by doing and learning through fun. The interactive exhibition features 55 experiments in the fields of natural sciences, mathematics, and information technology.

Journalists from various Bulgarian media outlets participated in a forum dedicated to aviation in the media, which BULATSA hosted in partnership with “Avioforum”.

In 4 modules, guest speakers from “Avioforum”, BULATSA, Sofia Airport and Bulgaria Air presented the various aspects of their work – challenges, interesting facts, terminology they use and other moments from their professional journey.

The aviation journalist and professional pilot Alexander Bogoyavlenski explained concepts from aviation terminology and made a general overview of the industry – airlines, manufacturers and aircraft incidents. Alexander Kolev and Ventsislav Nikolov from Sofia Airport spoke about the activities related to airport infrastructure and security, the areas of responsibility and control, aircraft servicing, handling companies and their rights and responsibilities.

The air traffic controller and head of BULATSA’s Training Centre Kamen Yordanov spoke about the activities of BULATSA, the method of personnel selection, the types of airspace and the planning of its use. Svetozar Tanev, Operations Manager of Bulgaria Air, spoke about the procedures and operational activities in civil aviation, the method of flight planning and the most important regulations in the field of ​​the European Union Aviation Safety Agency.

The meeting marked the beginning of a series of seminars dedicated to the aviation industry, which is one of the fastest developing sectors in the global economy.

We thank all colleagues who are interested in the world of aviation and have shown interest in the way it intertwines with journalism.

Bulgarian Air Traffic Services Authority (BULATSA) notifies aircraft operators and users of the Bulgarian airspace regarding the publication of Aeronautical chart 1:500 000, edition 11.0

The chart is available on the flight information portal of Bulgarian Air Traffic Services Authority (BULATSA) – https://b-flip.bulatsa.com/.

Changes in edition 11.0:

• Implementation of new temporary reserved area – LBTRA92;
• NDB BOZ completely withdrawn;
• Implementation of information about new aerodromes – Panicharevo (LBPN), Sapareva banya (LBSP), Belozem (LBBM), Pravets (LBPV) and new heliport – Dolna Mitropoliya (LBDH).
• Update of information about Kazanlak aerodrome (LBKL).

Over a hundred competitors, air traffic controllers and employees of BULATSA from all over the country and guests from Romania and Turkey participated in the international small goal (7-a-side) football tournament “55 years BULATSA” in the Albena resort.

After many contested and intriguing matches, the Sofia team won the cup, defeating Chaika Air Base in the final. The bronze medals went to Gorna Oryahovitsa and friends, and the Varna team took fourth place. After them, from fifth to eighth place in the final ranking finished the teams of Constanta, Bucharest, Istanbul and Burgas.

The top scorer of the tournament with 9 goals was Dimo Tyufekchiev and the best goalkeeper was Stoyan Georgiev, both from Chaika Air Base.