Russian Regnum news agency reports that in coming week the renovated airport in the capital of Nagorno Karabakh Stepanakert will be put into exploitation. It is known that the airport is planned to serve 100 passengers in an hour with a prospective that the number will rise. The flights will be carried out by “Air Artsakh” company.
It is also known that famous Argentinean businessman of Armenian origin Eduardo Ernekian who is the owner of Yerevan “Zvartnoc” airport promised to present an airplane to the Karabakh aviation. Possibly this will be the first step in the formation of plane-park for “Air Artsakh”.
The Stepanakert Airport was originally built in 1974 and primarily served flights from Yerevan and Baku. The airport had remained idle since 1992. In 2008, Karabakh authorities began renovation of the airport, including the construction of a new main building, which resembles an eagle with opened wings, and the widening of runways to accommodate modern aircraft. Azerbaijani authorities have repeatedly threatened, as recently as July of this year, to shoot down civilian aircraft headed toward Karabakh.
This caused negative reaction of international community and official Yerevan called the threats “reflection of state terrorism”. The RA president Serzh Sargsyan announced that he will be the first passenger of the first flight Yerevan-Steapanakert.
These days House of Foreign Affairs Committee senior member Brad Sherman called on Azerbaijani authorities “to guarantee it will take no violent actions against flights into Artsakh, reported the Armenian National Committee of America.
Sherman’s statement includes an urge to “cut off all aid, arms transfers and to downgrade relations with Azerbaijan’s military” in case if Baku doesn’t change its policy.
At the same time ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian said “We look forward to the opening of the airport and to the travel, tourism and economic opportunities it will bring to the burgeoning Artsakh Republic.”
Meantime as “Собеседник Армении” reports NKR Defense Army is provided with all modern equipment enabling not only to plan an efficient defense of air territory of NKR, but also to shoot any air target at far distance up to the airport after Heydar Aliyev.
In its turn the head of Azerbaijani tour agency R&R Rustam Ahmedom proposed to build an international airport in lowlands of Karabakh not included in NKR, which according to Ahmedov will assist the “propaganda of Karabakh subject in the tourism policy of Azerbaijan”.
