What happened
On the evening of the accident, the flight crew received a briefing indicating that weather conditions at their destination, Sofia, were below visibility minimums. The aircraft departed from Burgas Airport at 19:01 local time. Due to the deteriorating weather, the captain elected to divert the flight to Plovdiv, where meteorological conditions were expected to be more favorable.
The crew established communication with Plovdiv approach control at 19:50 local time and received clearance to begin their descent. Approximately twelve minutes later, while performing a night descent in conditions of restricted visibility, the aircraft impacted a mountain slope within the Rhodopes Mountain Range near Smolyan. The wreckage was located several hours after the impact, approximately 56 km southwest of Plovdiv Airport. There were 35 fatalities among the occupants.
Findings
Investigations into the accident revealed that a change in air traffic control personnel occurred shortly before the crash. While the initial contact with approach control was made at 19:50, a military controller took over duties from a civilian controller four minutes later. This incoming controller issued a descent clearance without having precise knowledge of the aircraft's exact position. Consequently, the airplane descended below the minimum safe altitude. The lack of visibility during the night approach was also identified as a contributing factor to the impact.