Nicosia is one of the few world capitals without its own airport. Or rather, there is an airport, but it has been closed since July 20, 1974, when Turkish troops landed on the territory of Cyprus. UN peacekeepers decided that the airport should not go to either side. As a result, time has stopped here.
Nicosia Airport has been the main airport in Cyprus since the early thirties. On March 27, 1968, 6 years before the war in Cyprus, the most modern terminal for that time was built. More than a million pounds sterling was spent on construction. The new terminal could simultaneously handle 11 aircraft and up to 800 passengers.
Aeroflot planes even flew here.
My acquaintance with the airport began with the control tower.
This is what she looked like forty years ago.
And this is what it looks like now. Time is merciless.
Despite the devastation, one gets the feeling that people left here quite recently. The iron boxes with maps, rusted over forty years, were clearly opened in a hurry.
The best view of the surrounding area opens from the roof of the control tower, where the radio operator's room was located.
From here I was able to film UN helicopters conducting training flights over the airport.
The building of the new airport terminal can be seen from there. This is what it looked like in the early seventies.
And so it is today. The glass was broken, the letters were crumbling, and there were traces of gunshots.
On a sign in the middle of the hall there is the inscription Tipping porters not allowed (don't tip porters). The last porter left here forty years ago.
For forty years, only airplanes painted on the walls have flown here.
There has been no smell of fresh food in the buffet kitchen for forty years.
The main attraction of the airport is one of two aircraft destroyed by Turkish troops - a Hawker Siddeley HS-121 Trident in the Cyprus Airways livery.
Here he is in front of the terminal in the early seventies.
And this is what it looked like the day after the bombing. Damaged, but not yet looted.
His colleague was much less fortunate. War is war.
As a result of the bombing, the entire Cyprus Airways fleet, which at that time consisted of five aircraft, was grounded. The other two Tridents and BAC1-11 suffered less damage.
3 years after the war, British specialists repaired them (using, among other things, spare parts from destroyed aircraft) and they left Nicosia airport under their own power. By the way, this was the last flight from the airport. Today one of the Tridents (in British European Airways livery) is in the Imperial War Museum in Duxford. BAC1-11 flew under the Cyprus Airways flag until 1995.
The condition of the Trident at Nicosia airport is clearly not museum-worthy - the interior is completely looted, the windows are broken, and there are bullet marks on the fuselage.
Another aircraft on the territory of Nicosia airport is the military Avro Shackleton MR.3 XF700. In 1962, it made an emergency landing; repairs were considered unprofitable - the plane was used as a simulator.
As you can see, the war did not spare him either.
On August 29, 1973, a year before the Turkish invasion of Cyprus, a Czechoslovakian Tu-104 flying from Damascus skidded off the runway at Nicosia Airport. No one was killed, but the plane was beyond repair. This is what the plane looked like the day after the incident.
The plane was bought by an enterprising Cypriot - they say almost everything was ready to turn it into a restaurant, but the plans were interrupted by the war. Today, the tail of the Carcass, on which the Czechoslovak flag can be seen, is located in the zone controlled by Turkish troops.
One of the most popular Mediterranean islands is Cyprus. Numerous tourists from different parts of our planet arrive on the sunny coast of the island. And, of course, many of our compatriots choose Cyprus for relaxation, entertainment and enjoying its natural beauty. There are numerous Cyprus airports on the map, so it is worth knowing how they are located and exploring the most convenient options for yourself. The fact is that tourists can get to the southern and northern parts of the island via different routes, so it is necessary to have additional information about international Cypriot harbors in order to know exactly the name of the airport in Cyprus, where they fly from Moscow or other large Russian cities.
Considering the list of airports in Cyprus, we should highlight seven main ones, which are located in the following cities:
- Larnaca;
- Paphos;
- Limassol;
- Nicosia;
- Gechitkale;
- Episcopies;
- Ercan.
It is worth noting that the Nicosia air harbor has been considered abandoned for a long time. Therefore, tourists should not count on the operation of this air harbor. Two more air harbors of Cyprus - Erzdan and Gecitkale - operate flights over the northern part of the island, while only the first receives tourists from international flights. To summarize, we can say that there are only three international air piers on the island:
- Larnaca;
- Pathos;
- Ercan.
Larnaca Airport on the map
Air harbor of Larnaca island
The main and youngest air harbor of Cyprus is Larnaca (IATA code - LCA, ICAO code - LCLK). Every day the airport receives numerous tourists from different countries of the world. Our compatriots can land at the airport on both direct and charter flights, flying from the capital of Russia or from St. Petersburg.
In which city is the airport located in Cyprus, many tourists who have decided to visit the island for the first time may ask. Answering this question is not so simple; it is easier to list the resort towns located near the airport:
- Limassol and Protaras;
- Nicosia;
- Ayia Napa.
To get to the above cities from the main airport, tourists need to travel approximately 50-60 km.
What transport can you use to get to the resort town?
Having landed at the Cyprus airfield, tourists should understand that they will need to use a different type of vehicle to get to the resort town. It’s immediately worth noting that there is no railway line on the island, so you need to choose another type of transport:
- buses going in the desired direction;
- a car rented for vacation;
- You can use taxi services. To get to the nearest resort towns from Larnaca by taxi, tourists need to pay 50-55 euros.
A bus ticket to Limassol will cost 9-10 euros. However, you should not forget that you need to cover a considerable distance from the city center to the resort area, so you will have to order a taxi, and the payment will be 15-20 euros. You can rent a car, you will have to pay for the rental from 45 to 55 euros in one day, but everyone can get to the end point comfortably and conveniently.
Paphos Airport on the map
Cyprus air harbor - Paphos
Paphos (IATA code - PFO, ICAO code - LCPH) is the second largest air terminal in Cyprus. Of course, this airport does not receive as many tourists as Larnaca, but it serves passengers at the highest level. On the territory of the air harbor there are:
- numerous shops;
- restaurants and cafes;
- places for rest;
- ATMs and terminals.
The only problem that tourists will need to solve is to choose the appropriate mode of transport to get to the resort town from the airport. The fact is that there are no direct routes in Paphos that would take tourists to the nearest resort towns, among which the following should be highlighted:
- Polis – 50-55 km;
- Limassol – 65 km;
- Larnaca – 130 km;
- Nicosia – 145 km.
To get to the resort town, tourists need to rent a car or take a taxi. For a taxi service you will have to pay from 25 to 75 euros, the cost depends on the duration of the journey.
Ercan Airport on the map
Cyprus Ercan Air Pier
The northern part of Cyprus is not recognized as a separate state, so our tourists will need to make a transfer if they need to fly to this part of the island. The main air harbor in the northern part of the island is called Ercan (IATA code - ECN, ICAO code - LCEN). The international air terminal of the northern part of the island is located in close proximity to the city of Nicosia. This air hub is not large, so arriving tourists need to cover the distance from the plane to the terminal on foot.
If our compatriots are planning a vacation in the northern part of the island, then it should be taken into account that the flight is carried out through the territory of Turkey, and the transfer is made in Istanbul or Antalya. It should be added that all vacationers arriving at the Erzdan air hub will not be able to get to the south of the island, since according to the law, this will be considered a legal violation. This problem can be solved if, upon entry, you put a stamp on a special form, and not in your passport. Tourists need to ask for such a document at the airport after the air transport lands.
The following resort towns are located near the northern air hub:
- Nicosia – 13-15 km;
- Famagusta – 40-43 km;
- Kyrenia – 60-63 km.
From the airport you can get to any resort town by bus or taxi. The cost of a taxi depends on the distance of the resort town.
The best routes for our compatriots
Our compatriots most often choose charter flights to fly to Cyprus, the popularity of which increases with the onset of the most favorable holiday season.
The name of the airport in Cyprus, where people fly from Moscow most often, is Paphos; sometimes Russian tourists land at the Cypriot air port of Larnaca, less often in Ercan.
For travel, tourists are offered flights operated by Cypriot companies and our domestic ones. It is worth noting that almost all Cyprus carriers prefer not to fly over Turkish territory, which increases flight time. On average, such a flight lasts from 4.5 to 5 hours. By choosing domestic aircraft, you can end up in Cyprus after 3 - 3.5 hours. The cost of a round trip flight from the Russian capital, varies from 13 to 19 thousand rubles.
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military (formerly civilian)
Coordinates: 35°09′00″ n. w. 033°16′38″ E. d. / 35.15000° N. w. 33.27722° east. d. / 35.15000; 33.27722(G) (I)
Nicosia International Airport(Greek Διεθνές Αεροδρόμιο Λευκωσίας , tour Lefkoşa Uluslararası Havaalanı; IATA: NIC, ICAO: LCNC listen)) is an international airport of the Republic of Cyprus, located west of Nicosia in the suburb of Lakatamia. In the past, it was the main airport of the island of Cyprus until the Turkish invasion in 1974, after which it was closed to civil aviation. Currently, the contingent of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus is based there.
Story
Nicosia airfield was opened in the 1930s and was initially used as an air base for the Royal Air Force, and it formally belongs to the British Ministry of Defense to this day. But in 1939, the Shell Company built a runway, which it began to use for landing its planes. In the same year, the Arab airline Misrair began flying to Cyprus. During World War II, American bombers were based here to bomb Romania.
Since 1948, civil aircraft flights to Nicosia Airport have been resumed, including Misrair, BOAC, Cyprus Airways and Middle East Airlines. In 1949, the first terminal building was constructed, as Nissen huts had previously been used. In 1959, the building was extended, but in 1968 a new building was built, and the old one was given to the local flying club. An expansion of the airport was planned for 1974, but the events that occurred in July, which ended with the Turkish invasion, crossed out this plan. After this, flights to Nicosia airport were stopped. The last passenger planes flew from the airport in 1977 with UN permission, when British Airways took over the three Cyprus Airways aircraft remaining at the airport.
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Links
- from the Great Circle Mapper website. Source: DAFIF (valid October 2006).
- on NOAA/NWS
- on Aviation Safety Network
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Excerpt characterizing Nicosia (airport)
Ilya Andreich swallowed his drool with pleasure and pushed Pierre, but Pierre also wanted to talk. He stepped forward, feeling animated, not yet knowing why and not yet knowing what he would say. He had just opened his mouth to speak when one senator, completely without teeth, with an intelligent and angry face, standing close to the speaker, interrupted Pierre. With a visible habit of leading debates and holding questions, he spoke quietly, but audibly:“I believe, my dear sir,” said the senator, muttering his toothless mouth, “that we are not called here to discuss what is more convenient for the state at the present moment - recruitment or militia.” We are called to respond to the appeal with which the Emperor has honored us. And we will leave it to the highest authorities to judge what is more convenient - recruitment or militia...
Pierre suddenly found an outcome to his animation. He became bitter against the senator, who introduced this correctness and narrowness of views into the upcoming occupations of the nobility. Pierre stepped forward and stopped him. He himself did not know what he would say, but he began animatedly, occasionally bursting into French words and expressing himself bookishly in Russian.
“Excuse me, Your Excellency,” he began (Pierre was well acquainted with this senator, but considered it necessary to address him here officially), “although I do not agree with Mr.... (Pierre paused. He wanted to say mon tres honorable preopinant), [my dear opponent,] - with Mr.... que je n"ai pas L"honneur de connaitre; [whom I do not have the honor to know] but I believe that the class of nobility, in addition to expressing its sympathy and admiration, is also called upon to discuss the measures by which we can help the fatherland. I believe,” he said, inspired, “that the sovereign himself would be dissatisfied if he found in us only the owners of the peasants whom we give to him, and ... the chair a canon [fodder for guns] that we make of ourselves, but I wouldn’t find any co…co… advice in us.
Many moved away from the circle, noticing the senator’s contemptuous smile and the fact that Pierre spoke freely; only Ilya Andreich was pleased with Pierre’s speech, just as he was pleased with the speech of the sailor, the senator, and in general always with the speech that he last heard.
“I believe that before discussing these issues,” Pierre continued, “we must ask the sovereign, most respectfully ask His Majesty to communicate to us, how many troops we have, what is the situation of our troops and armies, and then...”
But Pierre did not have time to finish these words when he was suddenly attacked from three sides. The one who attacked him the most was a Boston player who had known him for a long time and was always well disposed towards him, Stepan Stepanovich Apraksin. Stepan Stepanovich was in his uniform, and, whether because of the uniform or for other reasons, Pierre saw a completely different person in front of him. Stepan Stepanovich, with senile anger suddenly appearing on his face, shouted at Pierre:
- Firstly, I will report to you that we do not have the right to ask the sovereign about this, and secondly, if the Russian nobility had such a right, then the sovereign cannot answer us. Troops move in accordance with the movements of the enemy - troops depart and arrive...
Another voice came from a man of average height, about forty years old, whom Pierre had seen in the old days among the gypsies and knew to be a bad card player, and who, also changed in uniform, moved closer to Pierre and interrupted Apraksin.
Nicosia Ercan International Airport is an international airport of the partially recognized (only Turkey recognized) state of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Due to the fact that the airport is located in a state unrecognized by most of the world community, it also does not have the official status of an international airport and its IATA and ICAO codes are not included in the officially registered lists. Ercan Airport is located 20 km east of the capital of the Republic of Cyprus, Nicosia, near the village of Timvu.
Nicosia Ercan Airport is regularly used by several international airlines to operate their cargo and passenger flights. The airport operates regular, charter and seasonal flights to Turkey, as well as to European destinations (with a mandatory stopover at one of the airports in Turkey).
Passenger terminal of Nicosia Ercan Airport
Currently, the Ercan Airport terminal complex has one passenger terminal.
The airport terminal building houses various retail outlets, shops, restaurants, bars and cafes.
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Ercan Airport is an international airport of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, located northeast of the capital Nicosia. It was built by Britain during World War II, used as a military base, and later abandoned. However, after the recognition of Turkish authority over this part of the island, the airport began to be expanded and rebuilt, and today it is one of the largest civilian airports in Cyprus: the new Ercan Airport terminal was opened in May 2004.
There is one important feature of the airport: all aircraft flying internationally to and from Ercan Airport must make an intermediate landing at one of the Turkish airports. This is due to the fact that the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus has not yet been recognized as independent.
The airport is easily accessible by bus (Airport-Nicosia) or taxi from anywhere in Northern Cyprus. The check-in desk and passport control are located close to each other, the airport terminal has currency exchange offices, luggage storage, a mother and child room, several cafes and Duty Free shops. Prices are usually quoted in euros, but it is possible to pay in Turkish lira, US dollars or British pounds.
