Ovchepoltsi Airstrip

Economic reasons following the end of the socialist era in Bulgaria. The airstrip was an agricultural airfield operated by the state-owned enterprise 'Agricultural Aviation' ('Селскостопанска авиация'). After the political changes in 1989, the system of large, state-run collective farms was dismantled and the land was privatized. This eliminated the need for a centralized, large-scale agricultural aviation service, rendering hundreds of such small airfields across the country, including Ovchepoltsi, economically obsolete and leading to their abandonment.

The site has been completely repurposed and is no longer recognizable as an airfield. The land where the runway and support facilities once stood is now occupied by a large photovoltaic power plant, specifically the Karadzhalovo Solar Park, which is one of the largest in the region. The flat, open, and unobstructed nature of the former airfield made it an ideal location for a solar farm. All aviation-related infrastructure has been removed.

Ovchepoltsi Airstrip was a vital component of Bulgaria's agricultural infrastructure during the socialist period (approx. 1950s-1989). It was not a public or major military airport but a specialized base for agricultural aircraft. Its primary operation was supporting the large collective farms in the fertile Upper Thracian Plain. Aircraft, most commonly the Antonov An-2, but also potentially the Z-37 Čmelák, would operate from the airstrip for crop dusting, aerial seeding, and pest control. It was part of a vast and crucial network that enabled the centrally-planned agricultural output of the People's Republic of Bulgaria.

Zero. The complete conversion of the site into a major, operational solar power plant makes any prospect of reopening it as an airport physically and economically infeasible. The land is now used for critical energy infrastructure, and restoring it to aviation use would require the removal of the multi-million dollar solar park.