| Ercan International Airport | |
| Nativename: | Turkish: Ercan Uluslararası Havalimanı |
| Iata: | ECN |
| Icao: | LCEN[1] |
| Type: | Private |
| Pushpin Map: | Cyprus#Europe |
| Pushpin Label: | ECN/LCEN |
| Coordinates: | 35.1597°N 33.5°W |
| Owner-Oper: | T&T Ercan Airport |
| City-Served: | Northern Cyprus |
| Location: | Tymbou |
| Hub: | Fly Kıbrıs Airlines |
| Operating Base: | Pegasus Airlines |
| Elevation-F: | 403 |
| Elevation-M: | 123 |
| R1-Number: | 11/29 |
| R1-Length-F: | 9,038 |
| R1-Length-M: | 3,200 |
| R1-Surface: | Asphalt |
| Stat-Year: | 2023 |
| Stat1-Header: | Yearly Passengers |
| Stat1-Data: | 3,990,324 30.9% |
| Stat2-Header: | Aircraft movements |
| Stat2-Data: | 26,697 18.6% |
| Stat3-Data: | 1,104,907 15.2% |
| Stat3-Header: | Cargo (kg) |
| Footnotes: | Source: Civil Aviation Authority[2] |
Ercan International Airport is the primary civilian airport of the unrecognised de facto state of Northern Cyprus. It is located about 13km (08miles) east of Nicosia, near the village of Tymbou. The airport currently only serves flights to and from Turkey.
The precursor of Ercan Airport, Tymbou 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 1974 and the partition of the island, it was taken over by the Turkish army, and today is used as the main civilian airport of Northern Cyprus. It is named after .[3]
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' main port of 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".[4]
However,, the rule still applies, and Ercan airport has seen a decrease in customers, 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.
Plans have been completed to enlarge the airport in order to increase capacity. Ercan Airport had a long runway and an apron with a capacity of seven aircraft. Although the runway was long enough for large planes to land, it was not long enough for take-offs. The plan has been for the construction of a new runway of and extension of the existing runway to 3200 m, apron and terminal building and with the planned new apron more than doubling the current plane capacity.[5] In 2021, the new terminal was under construction, planned to be much larger than the existing airport and to have 9 airbridges.[6] The new terminal and extended runway were opened on 20 July 2023,[7] after delays,[8] with a power outage less than 12 hours after the opening. The first flight to the new terminal was made by Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.[9] [10]
Flights to and from the airport are banned internationally due to the ongoing Cyprus dispute.[11] Non-stop flights only take place from Turkey, and all planes that fly to Northern Cyprus from other countries have to stop over in Turkey.[12] Because of these difficulties and inconveniences, the majority of Turkish Cypriots with Republic of Cyprus citizenship prefer to travel through Larnaca and Paphos airports, which are located in territory under the control of the internationally recognised government of the Republic of Cyprus; this option is not available, however, to Turkish citizens.[13] [14] Nonetheless, several Turkish airlines operate direct flights from Ercan to Europe with intermediate stops in Turkey via some of the destinations listed below.[11] [12] The Government of the Republic of Cyprus considers the use of Ercan Airport to enter or exit the island illegal,[15] and could result in facing criminal charges when entering (or exiting) the Republic.