Members of airline pilot unions worldwide have received the third safety bulletin since 2001 spotlighting the protracted political dispute that has created uncoordinated and potentially conflicting air traffic services (ATS) in part of the Nicosia Flight Information Region (FIR).1 The airspace of concern extends northward to Turkey from the Turkish Cypriot–governed northern part of Cyprus, an island nation in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.
The bulletin from the International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Associations (IFALPA) reminds flight crews about unique operational risks in this part of the Nicosia FIR, especially the potential for confusion about which ATS area control center (ACC) has authority. IFALPA urged pilots to be aware of consensus recommendations from global aviation organizations on how to handle communications. The recommendations address the fundamental issue of controllers from the Greek Cypriot ACC and the Tu…
