Lyulyakovo Airfield

The closure was for economic reasons. Lyulyakovo Airfield was an integral part of Bulgaria's state-owned agricultural aviation network ('Селскостопанска авиация' - SSA). This network was heavily subsidized to support large-scale collective farms during the socialist era. After the fall of the communist regime in 1989, the transition to a market economy led to the dismantling of collective farms, the end of state subsidies, and the collapse of the state-run agricultural aviation enterprise. The airfield's operational model became economically unsustainable.

The airfield is currently abandoned and in a state of severe disrepair. Satellite imagery shows a clearly visible but cracked and weathered paved runway and taxiways, completely unsuitable for aviation. The former hangars and support buildings are derelict. A large portion of the land immediately adjacent to the southern end of the runway has been repurposed and is now occupied by a large-scale photovoltaic (solar) power plant, a common fate for such disused, flat, and open sites in the region.

Lyulyakovo Airfield was a significant regional base for agricultural aviation. Located in the heart of the Dobrudzha region, often called the 'granary of Bulgaria,' its primary mission was to support the intensive agriculture of the area. The airfield handled a fleet of specialized aircraft, most commonly the Antonov An-2 biplane, for large-scale crop dusting, pest control, and fertilization. Its existence was crucial for the productivity of the vast, collectivized farms that characterized Bulgarian agriculture from the 1950s to the late 1980s.

There are no known or credible prospects for reopening Lyulyakovo Airfield for aviation purposes. The original economic reason for its existence is gone, and the cost to restore the dilapidated infrastructure to meet modern safety and operational standards would be prohibitive. Furthermore, the partial repurposing of the site for a solar farm makes a full restoration of its original footprint highly unlikely. The site is considered permanently closed.