Bulgaria marks 111th anniversary of the first combat flight

A ceremony today will mark the 111th anniversary of the first combat flight of the military aviation and the Day of the Air Force. Wreaths will be laid in front of the Pilot's Monument near the National Assembly in Sofia in memory of the pilots who lost their lives during wartime and in peacetime.

111 years ago, on October 16, 1912, lieutenants Radul Milkov and Prodan Tarakchiev with their "Albatross" plane performed a reconnaissance flight over the Edirne fortress and managed to throw hand grenades over Karaagac station. The date of the first combat flight in the history of European aviation - October 16, has been accepted as an official holiday of the Air Force of the Republic of Bulgaria.