site.btaBulgarian Scientists Discover New Remains of Argentine Aircraft Crashed in 1976 on Bernard Point, Livingston Island

Bulgarian scientists traveling aboard the research vessel Sv. Sv. Kiril i Metodii (RSV421) discovered new remains of an aircraft belonging to the Argentine Air Force during a disembarkation operation on the shore of Bernard Point, Commanding Officer Radko Muevski told BTA on Friday.

This is the second time the Bulgarian Antarctic Expedition has discovered remains of the aircraft, which crashed in 1976. In early 2024, Bulgarian Antarctic researchers from the research vessel Sv. Sv. Kiril i Metodii came across metal aircraft debris in the area of False Bay and Bernard Point on Livingston Island. The remains were found in the False Bay area by geologist Kalin Naydenov and mountaineers Doychin Boyanov, Kiril Doskov and Marcho Paunov. The aircraft had been conducting reconnaissance in the area to assess favorable conditions for research activities and for the passage of vessels of the Argentine Navy.

The newly discovered remains were found by physicist Oleg Vasilev, who had previously observed signs of debris at the site during earlier shoreline imaging. On Friday, a drone flight confirmed the presence of aircraft remains, after which the parts were transported to the ship.

A ceremony was held aboard the vessel to pay tribute and express respect to the fallen servicemen of the Argentine Navy and Air Force. The recovered parts are to be handed over to the Argentine naval base Mar del Plata.

During the ceremony, Lieutenant Agustin Vieira da Costa expressed gratitude on behalf of the Argentine Navy for the Bulgarian crew’s efforts to honour the fallen and assist with the transportation of the remains. According to him, these actions represent noble cooperation and friendship worthy of respect.

The Bulgarian naval research vessel Sv. Sv. Kiril i Metodii (RSV 421) departed for Antarctica from Varna (on the Black Sea) on November 7, 2025. After a month-long voyage across the Atlantic Ocean, the ship arrived at the Argentine naval base in Mar del Plata on December 13.

BTA has had a national press club on board the ship since 2022 and another on Livingston Island since February 2024. These are added to the news agency’s other 41 national press clubs (33 in Bulgaria, seven abroad in neighbouring countries and in nations with large Bulgarian communities, and one mobile National Book Press Club). BTA's Director General Kiril Valchev announced ahead of the fourth voyage to Antarctica on November 7, 2025 that the national news agency would send a special correspondent in January-February 2026.

He said the press clubs exist thanks to the generous support of RSV 421 and Bulgaria’s St Kliment Ohridski Base, which provide the necessary facilities. 

The news items of BTA's special correspondents on RSV 421 and Antarctica are freely available in Bulgarian and English on the agency's website. They can be used free of charge by all media, with attribution to BTA. Valchev recalled that thanks to its correspondents, the news agency appears among the top results on Google when searching for the phrase “Antarctica correspondent”.