US due to stop managing Afghan airspace by end of June

Unless a solution – even a temporary one – is found, Afghanistan would basically become a no-fly zone by the end of June.

KABUL // The United States will stop managing Afghan airspace by the end of June after its air-traffic control contract with the government in Kabul expires.

The latest development could see international airlines forced to cancel flights both into the country and over its territory.

Unless a solution – even a temporary one – is found, Afghanistan would basically become a no-fly zone, which would cost the government millions of dollars in revenue and seriously damage its credibility with overseas donors and investors, officials and diplomats in Kabul said.

The Afghan airspace, a key air corridor between Europe and Asia, has been managed by the US-led international military coalition or foreign companies paid by donor countries since 2001, when the Taliban regime was overthrown in a US-led invasion.

The air traffic over Afghanistan, as well as to and from the Central Asian country generates about US$33 million (Dh121m) a year, according to Mohammad Qassim Wafayezada, the Afghan Civil Aviation Authority’s deputy director general on policy and planning.

International airlines that fly into the Afghan capital include the Dubai-based Emirates, Air India and Turkish Airlines.

There are no flights to and from the European Union because the Afghan Civil Aviation Authority is not recognised by the bloc, which cannot certify it due to safety deficiencies.

The current contract on Afghan air traffic control, paid for by the United States, ends June 30.

* Associated Press