OH and I flew back to SOF on Sunday at the end of our TP run to the States. This time we stopped in Sofia for a 24 hours flying visit so I have two more data points.

Both planes came into gate B7 which is non-Schengen, so a B2B is straightforward on these occasions - up the ramp and wait, having told the person greeting the plane what you're doing.

But because we were going into the City we experienced what would happen if the plane were on a remote stand instead of a gate.

From the gate you walk down to a bus loading area and are bussed to passport control, just as you would be from a remote stand. Passport control is a real challenge if you do not have an EU passport (electronic gates) as they were taking 2 minutes per person and allowing people to jump the queue. You need to be at the front of the bus behind the driver ideally so that you would be in the first couple of people into passport control. Then a quick dash through baggage reclaim and back up through security, which is of course pot luck, and a fast walk to the gate...

The plane seems to be on the ground for about 40 minutes, so it will be tight if the plane is at a remote stand, but because all passengers would have to be bussed to board the plane it should be doable although at the expense of an increased heart rate!

But make sure you're first off the inward bound bus!