US Due to Stop Managing Afghan Airspace by June

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The United States is to stop managing Afghan airspace by the end of June after its air-traffic control contract with the government in Kabul expires, a development that 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 warn.

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

The air traffic over Afghanistan, as well as to and from the Central Asian country generates about $33 million 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. Many other airlines fly over Afghanistan. Read More at USAToday

US Due to Stop Managing Afghan Airspace by June

امریکا به کنترول ترافیک هوایی افغانستان پایان می دهد