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One of the H225M helicopters of the Hungarian Defense Forces has taken off for Bulgaria to help fight forest fires there. The aircraft, equipped with Bambi Bucket balloons, as well as all necessary equipment and personnel, departed from Szolnok (central Hungary) at 2:45 p.m. on Sunday, Defense Minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky announced.
The Minister noted that Bulgaria is battling severe forest fires in several parts of the country, where temperatures exceed 42 degrees Celsius in some places, and strong winds are further complicating firefighting efforts. In this emergency situation, Bulgaria requested international assistance through the European Union Emergency Response Coordination Center (ERCC), asking Member States for a total of four firefighting helicopters and two aircraft to provide air support.
The aim of Hungary’s assistance is to ease the pressure on Bulgarian disaster management and contribute to controlling the forest fires, with particular regard to the hotspots that have developed near the towns of Tran and Strumyani, threatening populated areas in several places,”
the Ministry of Defense quoted the politician as saying.
The Hungarian Defense Forces, with multi-purpose helicopters and well-trained soldiers, have already proven themselves in numerous domestic and international aid operations, the Ministry recalled. Last year, they helped extinguish forest fires in North Macedonia as part of an international cooperation effort, and they also participated in fighting the flames in Vas County (western Hungary), supporting disaster relief efforts.
On July 23, 2025, a pair of aircraft flew to Albania to help extinguish forest fires there. In addition, they also played an active role in flood protection tasks in the fall of 2024, as they assisted in rescue operations in Kisoroszi, Pest County, with helicopter patient transport, while in Bosnia and Herzegovina, they rescued an injured child by helicopter from flood-stricken Jablanica.
The Minister recalled that the Hungarian Defense Forces’ helicopter fleet was completed in July 2025, when the last two aircraft arrived. This has brought the total number of medium-sized, multi-purpose Airbus H225M helicopters available to 16.
Via MTI, Featured image: MTI/Bruzák Noémi