Ercan International Airport

Ercan Airport
Ercan Havalimanı
Αεροδρόμιο Ερτζάν Λευκωσίας/Τύμβου
Summary
Airport type private airport
Owner T&T Ercan Airport
Operator T&T Ercan Airport
Serves Northern Cyprus
Location Tymvou
Elevation AMSL 403 ft / 123 m
Coordinates 35°09′35″N 33°30′00″E / 35.15972°N 33.50000°E / 35.15972; 33.50000Coordinates: 35°09′35″N 33°30′00″E / 35.15972°N 33.50000°E / 35.15972; 33.50000
Website www.ercanhavalimani.com
Map
ECN/LCEN
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
11/29 9,038 2,755 Asphalt
Statistics (Nov 2012)
Monthly Passengers 204,208 Increase[2]
Monthly Aircraft 1,646 Increase[2]

Ercan International Airport (Turkish: Ercan Uluslararası Havalimanı pronounced [æɾˈdʒan uɫusɫaɾaɾaˈsɯ havalimaˈnɯ]) (IATA: ECN, ICAO: LCEN)[1] is the primary civilian airport of Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. It is located about 13 km east of North Nicosia, near the village of Kirklar.

Flights to the airport are banned internationally.[3] Non-stop flights only take place from Turkey, which is the only country to recognise Northern Cyprus, and all planes that fly to Northern Cyprus from other countries have to stop over in Turkey.[4]

History

Check-in area

The precursor of Ercan Airport, Tymvou Airport, was constructed by the British in World War II as a military airport, during their colonial rule of the island. Following the Turkish Invasion of Cyprus and the partition of the island into it was occupied by the Turkish army, and today it is used as the main civilian airport of Northern Cyprus.

Since 2006, the rule which stipulates that flights are required to touch down at a Turkish airport before continuing to and from Ercan has been under discussion. In 2006, the Turkish government began discussions for Northern Cyprus's main port Famagusta, and main civilian airport Ercan, to be able to operate direct connections, with the UK government describing it as a "significant and creative offer".[5]

However, as of 2017 the rule still applies, and Ercan airport has seen a more than 400% decrease in customers,[6] as a result of new tight security measures imposed by the UK Department for Transport questioning the status of the airport and forcing passengers travelling between Britain and Northern Cyprus to disembark with their luggage and go through a fresh security check in Turkey in order to board a new aircraft for their final destination.[6]

Recent plans have arisen to privatise Ercan Airport, as well as plans to enlarge the airport in order to increase capacity. Ercan Airport currently has a 2.5 kilometre-long runway and an apron with a capacity of seven aircraft. Although the runway is long enough for large planes to land, it is not long enough for take-offs. The plan is for the construction of a new runway, apron and terminal building, with the planned new apron doubling the current plane capacity.[7]

Airlines and destinations

Due to the disputed international status of Northern Cyprus there are no non-stop scheduled flights between Ercan and destinations outside of Turkey. However, several airlines operate direct flights from Ercan to Europe with intermediate stops in Turkey.

AirlinesDestinations
AnadoluJet Ankara, Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen
AtlasGlobal Adana, Istanbul–Atatürk, Izmir
Corendon Airlines Charter: Antalya
Corendon Dutch Airlines Seasonal: Amsterdam
Freebird AirlinesCharter: Antalya
Seasonal charter: Amsterdam,[8] Berlin–Schönefeld,[9] Billund,[10] Brussels,[11] Copenhagen,[12] Düsseldorf,[13] Frankfurt,[14] Gothenburg,[15] Hamburg,[16] Hannover,[17] Helsinki,[18] Leipzig/Halle,[19] London-Gatwick,[20] Manchester,[21] Marseille,[22] Munich,[23] Paris–Charles de Gaulle,[24] Stockholm-Arlanda,[25] Stuttgart,[26] Vienna[27]
Pegasus Airlines Adana, Ankara, Antalya, Gaziantep, Hatay, Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen, Izmir
Turkish Airlines Ankara, Istanbul–Atatürk, Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen

References

  1. 1 2 "LCEN" in widespread use, including by the ICAO (e.g. here), however the code does not appear in an official ICAO List.
  2. 1 2 AB Haber News Site (Link to the news article)
  3. ↑ "Students Flock to Universities in Northern Cyprus". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  4. ↑ "Europe diary: Island isolation". BBC. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  5. ↑ "Turkey "will open up to Cyprus"". BBC News. 7 December 2006.
  6. 1 2 Larnaca Airport bookings soar at expense of Ercan following UK air embargo
  7. ↑ "Northern Cyprus airport for sale". Hurriyet. 27 December 2008.
  8. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh724
  9. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh452
  10. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh480
  11. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh403
  12. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh464
  13. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh184
  14. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh244
  15. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh480
  16. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh271
  17. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh325
  18. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh845
  19. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh272
  20. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh606
  21. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh605
  22. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh404
  23. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh303
  24. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh529
  25. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh829
  26. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh326
  27. ↑ https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/fh184

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