Podem Airstrip

Primarily economic reasons. The airstrip was part of a vast network of agricultural airfields operated by the state during the socialist era. With the fall of the People's Republic of Bulgaria, the system of large, state-owned collective farms was dismantled. The subsequent privatization and fragmentation of agricultural land eliminated the need for a centralized, state-run agricultural aviation service, rendering hundreds of these small airstrips, including Podem, obsolete and economically unviable.

The site is completely defunct as an airfield and has been reclaimed for its original purpose: agriculture. Satellite imagery of the coordinates shows the faint outline of the former grass/dirt runway, but the land is now actively cultivated. Crop lines run directly across the former operational area. There are no remaining buildings, hangars, or any aviation-related infrastructure on the site.

Podem Airstrip was a classic example of a 'Selskostopansko letishte' (Селскостопанско летище), or Agricultural Airfield, from the socialist period. Its sole purpose was to support intensive, industrialized agriculture in the surrounding fertile region of the Danubian Plain. Operations almost exclusively consisted of agricultural flights for crop dusting, fertilization, and pest control. The primary aircraft used would have been the rugged and reliable Antonov An-2 biplane, which was the workhorse of Eastern Bloc agricultural aviation. The airstrip was a vital piece of local infrastructure for the centrally-planned economy of the time but held no military or significant passenger/cargo transport role.

There are no known plans or realistic prospects for reopening Podem Airstrip. The economic model it was built for no longer exists, and the land has been fully integrated back into local farming. The cost of acquiring the land and rebuilding the necessary infrastructure for modern aviation use is prohibitive, especially with no apparent demand. The airstrip is considered permanently closed and exists only as a remnant of a past agricultural and political system.