The Defence Assistance Organisation ( bg, Организация за съдействие на отбраната, ОСО), initially the Voluntary Defence Assistance Organisation ( bg, Доброволна организация за съдействие на отбраната, ДОСО) was a government-sponsored network of youth clubs in the

People's Republic of Bulgaria The People's Republic of Bulgaria (PRB; bg, Народна Република България (НРБ), ''Narodna Republika Balgariya, NRB'') was the official name of Bulgaria, when it was a socialist republic from 1946 to 1990, ruled by the ...

. It was created in 1947 as the ''People's Union of Sports and Technics'', a government-sponsored body where Bulgarian youth could voluntarily engage in activities that were in some form related to the Bulgarian People's Army. The ''People's Union'' was reformed into the Voluntary Defence Assistance Organisation in 1951. It primarily consisted of various interest clubs for practical education in

driving Driving is the controlled operation and movement of a vehicle, including cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, and bicycles. Permission to drive on public highways is granted based on a set of conditions being met and drivers are required to ...

and automotive mechanics,

amateur radio Amateur radio, also known as ham radio, is the use of the radio frequency spectrum for purposes of non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, private recreation, radiosport, contesting, and emergency communi ...

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' ( sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' ( iceboat) or on ''land'' ( land yacht) over a chose ...

shooting Shooting is the act or process of discharging a projectile from a ranged weapon (such as a gun, bow, crossbow, slingshot, or blowpipe). Even the acts of launching flame, artillery, darts, harpoons, grenades, rockets, and guided missiles c ...

paragliding Paragliding is the recreational and competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders: lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched Glider (aircraft), glider aircraft with no rigid primary structure. The pilot sits in a :wikt:harness, harness o ...

flight training Flight training is a course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft. The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills. Flight training can be conducted under a st ...

and

airmanship Airmanship is skill and knowledge applied to aerial navigation, similar to seamanship in maritime navigation. Airmanship covers a broad range of desirable behaviors and abilities in an aviator. It is not simply a measure of skill or technique, bu ...

diving Diving most often refers to: * Diving (sport), the sport of jumping into deep water * Underwater diving, human activity underwater for recreational or occupational purposes Diving or Dive may also refer to: Sports * Dive (American football), ...

and many others. DAO clubs were part of a concentric nationwide network and were usually attached to factories, collective farms and schools. In exchange for a symbolic membership fee, DAO members could access all types of training for free. The organisation was absorbed by the

Komsomol The All-Union Leninist Young Communist League (russian: link=no, Всесоюзный ленинский коммунистический союз молодёжи (ВЛКСМ), ), usually known as Komsomol (; russian: Комсомол, links=n ...

in 1968 and ceased to exist. It was re-established in 1977 as the ''Organisation for Military Technical Preparation of the Population'', and again reorganised as DAO under the Council of Ministers in 1982. It was finally disbanded in 1992 after the collapse of Communism.

References

* {{Authority control People's Republic of Bulgaria Military of Bulgaria Youth organizations based in Bulgaria Youth organizations established in 1947 1992 disestablishments Amateur radio organizations Defunct organizations based in Bulgaria

See also

References