#Germany #France #Azerbaijan #Armenia #NOTAM
-THREADE, NOTAM AND SOURCE
Germany and France have published airspace warnings for both Armenia and Azerbaijan, following clashes along the northern border which broke out on July 12.
-THREADE, NOTAM AND SOURCE
Germany and France have published airspace warnings for both Armenia and Azerbaijan, following clashes along the northern border which broke out on July 12.
The flare-up reportedly involved exchanges of artillery fire between the two countries in the northern Tavush region, with each side accusing the other of trying to seize front-line positions in the mountainous area.
22 July, 2020 Germany and France have published airspace warnings for both Armenia and Azerbaijan, following clashes along the northern border which broke out on July 12.
The flare-up reportedly involved exchanges of artillery fire between the two countries in the northern Tavush region, with each side accusing the other of trying to seize front-line positions in the mountainous area.
At least 16 people are reported to have been killed in the fighting, with both sides also claiming to have shot down enemy drones. The Armenian military later displayed the remains of the 13 Azerbaijani drones it shot down,
and claims that 10 of them were attack drones that were about to strike Armenian military and civilian targets in the northern Tavush region bordering Azerbaijan.
Although the airspace warnings issued by Germany do not restrict overflights to certain flight levels, the Notams for both countries warn of a “potential risk to aviation… from military operation including anti aviation weaponry”.
The airspace warnings issued by France are a bit different. Essentially, they say that operators should not overfly Armenia east of 44'45 East longitude, or Azerbaijan west of 47'20 East longitude except for two specific connecting airways at FL340 or above -
M737 (between DISKA and VERCA) and M747 (between VERCA and LIMTI). Azerbaijan has now established a Temporary Restricted Area along the border with Armenia, which means that all east-west airways between the two countries are now effectively closed.
UBBA Notams A0083 and A0084 have the details (currently valid until Aug 22). All of the north-south airways on both sides of the border remain open.
Some of these are popular routes for traffic between Europe and the Middle East electing to overfly Iranian airspace instead of routing over Iraq.
Pay particular attention to these latest airspace warnings for Armenia and Azerbaijan if flying on any north-south airways close to the border between the two countries, especially M54 and N82 on the Armenia side, and M737 on the Azerbaijan side.
Azerbaijan and Armenia also have a long-standing dispute over the possession over Nagorno-Karabakh, an area located in the south-west of Azerbaijan labeled on airway charts as UBP3 (see map above). Although this area falls under the Baku FIR,
it's a de facto independent state with Armenian backing. There's a heavy military presence in this region too, and though there are no published airways here, Azerbaijan has had a Notam in place since 2011 warning that the airspace is prohibited.
Fighting in the north now appears to have paused but tensions remain high between both countries, and further clashes in the area are possible in the near term.
In Azerbaijan, thousands of protesters took to the streets this week to support retaking Nagorno-Karabakh by military force - so this latest conflict is by no means over yet.
NOTAMS MENTIONED:
@threadreaderapp please unroll
