site.btaPassengers Save Between 20 and 40 Minutes per Flight after Bulgaria's Accession to Schengen 

For one week after Bulgaria's accession to Schengen, statistics show that passengers save between 20 and 40 minutes per flight, Deputy Transport Minister Anna Natova said at an event organized by the Association of the Bulgarian Aviation Industry (ABAI), quoted by her ministry. The occasion is the welcoming of a symbolic flight in honor of Bulgaria's accession to Schengen, which took place from April 4 to 7 in several countries of the Schengen area on an initiative of the Association. 

"Shortening of the waiting time and inspections is a serious reason to increase the interest in Bulgaria as a business and tourist destination," said Deputy Minister Natova. She welcomed the "Bulgarian Schengen ambassadors" and said that the project has fulfilled its goal, which is to draw the attention of Europeans to Bulgaria's accession to the common area. Natova explained that the implementation of this flight aims to show that Bulgaria is already part of an "air Schengen" and becomes more easily accessible to all countries in the union.  According to her, the abolition of air and sea border controls between Bulgaria and the other Schengen countries is only a preparatory step for dropping checks at land borders as well. In her words, this will also be a serious incentive for the Bulgarian economy. 
 
The Director General of the Civil Aviation Administration General Directorate, Anelia Marinova, said that this symbolic flight embodies the efforts made for Bulgaria's entry into Schengen. The event was also attended by Agriculture Minister Kiril Vatev, Innovation Minister Milena Stoycheva, representatives of the private sector and others. Since March 31, Bulgaria has been a member of the Schengen area by air and sea and checks at air and sea borders are dropped after a process that has lasted more than a decade.