Hungarian Helicopter Leaves for Bulgaria to Provide Support in Wildfire Control

The minister recalled that Bulgaria is struggling with severe forest fires in several parts of the country, where the temperatures exceed 42 degrees Celsius in some places, and the strong wind makes firefighting work even more difficult. Among the extraordinary circumstances, Bulgaria asked for international help via the European Union Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC): it requested altogether four firefighting helicopters and two aircraft from the member states to provide air support.

“The goal of the Hungarian assistance is to mitigate pressure on the Bulgarian disaster management system and contribute to containing wildfires, especially at the points of origin near Tran and Strumyani, where inhabited areas are also endangered by the wildfire”, said the minister.

The Hungarian Defence Forces – with their multipurpose helicopters and well-prepared servicemembers – have already proved themselves in several domestic and international assistance operations. Last year, they helped with forest fire control in North Macedonia within the framework of international cooperation, and in Vas County, they also participated in curbing flames, thus supporting the disaster management system. On 23 July 2025, a pair of aircraft flew to Albania to help with containing the wildfires there. They also played an active role in flood control tasks; for instance, they helped with aeromedical helicopter transport in Kisoroszi and rescued injured children from the flood-stricken Jablanica, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky declared that the helicopter fleet of the Hungarian Defence Forces became complete in July 2025, when the last two rotorcraft arrived. With these, altogether 16 medium-lift, multipurpose Airbus H225M helicopters are available, which play a key role in domestic and international operations, from crisis management to supporting special operations.