According to Ani Nemova, there were attacks on her father Todor Yanakiev, the co-pilot originally assigned to that flight. She states that there were a total of three IL-18 planes that were sabotaged as a scare tactic to prevent Yanakiev from speaking to Todor Zhivkov about smuggling operations on freighters to Russia - one in Zürich, one in Beli Iskar, and one in Sofia. On all three occasions Todor Yanakiev was taken off the plane at the last minute. He was warned, however, that the next time that would happen, he would not be saved.