After the incident on the night of May 29 with the Russian drone that hit a residential building in the Romanian city of Galati, fears arose in our country that what happened to our northern neighbors could happen to us too.
Alas, it is entirely possible that military drones from the conflict in Ukraine could reach the territory of Bulgaria and potentially cause damage to settlements in our country. The risk to the country does not stem from deliberate attacks, but is related to possible technical malfunctions, navigation errors, or deflection of the devices due to electronic warfare systems.
Long-range kamikaze drones (such as the Russian Shahed-136/Geran-2), used for attacks in the Odessa region and the Danube Delta, have a range of over 1,000–2,000 km. This distance allows them to easily cross the Black Sea or Romanian airspace to Bulgaria.
Ukraine's electronic warfare (EW) systems often interfere with the GPS signals of attacking drones. This causes them to lose orientation and continue their flight in a random direction until they run out of fuel.
The growing number of incidents in neighboring countries proves the seriousness of the situation. Twice - in 2023 and 2024 - military drones with attached explosives (mines) surfaced on the rocks near the village of Tyulenovo. They were successfully neutralized by the Bulgarian Navy. Remnants of reconnaissance and maritime drones are periodically found in Bulgarian waters.
The Shahed-136/Geran-2 drone, which hit the apartment block in the Romanian city of Galati in the early hours of May 29, 2026, had the potential to cause a partial collapse of the building and numerous casualties. According to the Romanian Ministry of Defense, the entire warhead of the device exploded at the moment of impact on the 10th floor of the building. The fact that the incident ended with only two slightly injured civilians and 70 evacuated is due solely to a huge dose of chance, the trajectory of the impact and the rapid intervention of firefighters.
The damage that this type of military drone can inflict in a direct hit in an urban environment is extremely serious. This model of drone carries a high-explosive ammunition weighing between 40 and 50 kilograms. Such an explosion is quite enough to pierce reinforced concrete slabs, destroy external load-bearing walls and completely obliterate several apartments. The residual liquid fuel of the drone acts as an incendiary mixture. In Galați, the impact immediately set fire to the tenth floor. If the fire had not been localized immediately, it would have spread to the roof structure and the lower levels, trapping people.
The blast wave in Galați was so powerful that it shook the entire neighborhood. It damaged the elevator shaft, affected two separate entrances (stairwells) and destroyed five cars parked in front of the building.Danger from shrapnel: The drone's structure and the shattering concrete create thousands of flying shrapnel and glass that can kill or seriously injure people within a radius of tens of meters in the open air or in neighboring buildings.
The regions most at risk in our country from the penetration of stray drones from the military conflict in Ukraine are Northeastern Bulgaria and the Southern Black Sea Coast. The risk decreases in direct proportion to the distance from the border with Romania and the Black Sea. The geographical location of these areas places them directly in the potential path of errant drones.
The border regions along the Danube River (Silistra and Dobrich) are the most critical area due to their close proximity to Southern Ukraine (Odessa region and the Danube Delta), where drones are used intensively.
The municipality of Silistra is only about 130 km as the crow flies from the Romanian city of Galati, which has already been affected by an incident. The municipality of Tutrakan is located on the very bank of the Danube, very close to the trajectories that Russian drones use to bypass Ukrainian air defenses near Reni and Izmail.
The land border with Romania in the municipality of General Toshevo (Dobrich region) is completely open, and the region is only about 250 km from the military zone in southern Ukraine.
The Black Sea is used as a corridor for drone flights, which makes coastal settlements highly vulnerable to loss of GPS signal or damage.
The municipality of Shabla (city of Shabla, village of Tyulenovo, village of Durankulak) - the easternmost point of Bulgaria - is threatened here. Two downed drones with explosives have already been found in Tyulenovo. Radar coverage at low altitudes here is difficult due to the sea relief.
The Municipality of Kavarna (town of Kavarna, village of Balgarevo, Cape Kaliakra) is also at risk: The land that has been pushed out into the sea often proves to be the first obstacle for aircraft that have deviated from their course.
Drones that have lost orientation over the sea can easily enter the urban airspace of Varna.
Despite being further away from Ukraine, the Burgas region is threatened by long-range naval drones and reconnaissance drones. The port and refinery are strategic sites. Drones diverted by electronic warfare systems in the Black Sea can reach the Burgas Bay.
Due to heavy ship traffic and river mouths, the municipalities of Nessebar and Sozopol are also at risk for the dumping of naval mine debris and reconnaissance drones.
Small and low-flying drones are difficult to detect by standard military radars. However, within NATO, Bulgaria is stepping up patrols and intelligence sharing on the Eastern Flank.
The Army and the Ministry of Interior maintain specialized units for rapid response to reports of suspicious objects falling on beaches or land.