Slavotin Cropduster Strip

The closure was due to economic reasons and the obsolescence of its operational model. The airstrip was part of a state-run network supporting large, collective farms. After 1989, Bulgaria's transition to a market economy resulted in:
1. The dismantling of the large state-owned collective farms (TKZS) and the restitution of land to private owners, creating smaller, fragmented plots.
2. The privatization and eventual bankruptcy of the national agricultural aviation operator, 'Selskostopanska Aviatsiya'.
This new agricultural landscape made large-scale aerial crop-dusting from dedicated airstrips economically unviable, leading to the abandonment of Slavotin Strip and hundreds of similar facilities across the country.

The site is abandoned and in a state of advanced decay. Satellite imagery confirms that the paved runway, while still visible, is heavily cracked, overgrown with grass and weeds, and completely unsuitable for any aviation activity. The associated support buildings, likely a small hangar and storage/administrative facilities, appear derelict and are falling into ruin. The land has not been repurposed and the airstrip remains a decaying relic of its era, slowly being reclaimed by nature.

Slavotin Strip was a vital piece of infrastructure for Bulgaria's highly developed agricultural aviation sector during the socialist period. Its primary function was to serve as an operational base for aircraft involved in aerial application, such as crop dusting, fertilization, and pest control. Operations were typically carried out by robust aircraft like the Antonov An-2. The airstrip directly supported the productivity of the large collective farms in the fertile Montana Province, a key agricultural region in Northwestern Bulgaria. Its existence is representative of the centrally-planned, industrialized approach to agriculture practiced in the Eastern Bloc, where a dense network of such airstrips was essential for food production.

There are no known official plans, discussions, or prospects for reopening the Slavotin Cropduster Strip. The economic model that required its existence is gone, and the modern agricultural needs in the region do not justify the significant investment required to restore the runway, taxiways, and buildings. The airstrip is considered permanently closed and is likely to remain abandoned indefinitely.