Turkey Revises Initial NOTAM After Firm Greek Reaction

by Aggelos Skordas - Mar 2, 2015


Turkey has finally revised its previously issued NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) after the Greek government’s strong reaction, regarding the inclusion of Greek land in military exercises within the Aegean Sea and Greek airspace. On Friday, February 27, Turkey issued a NOTAM requesting to reserve extensive Greek airspace from March 2 to December 31 for military exercises, include firing ammunition over the Aegean Sea, from the Greek island of Lemnos to Skyros within the Athens FIR.

The move was considered a serious provocation by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras who decided to take the matter to higher authorities. Thus, the Greek Foreign Ministry spokesman noted that Turkey’s provocative move is serious and dangerous. Meanwhile, after Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias described the situation to Tsipras, the Greek government immediately issued a notice to all relevant bodies such as the NATO, the European Union, the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization), the United Nations and of course Ankara, requesting the cancellation of the military exercises.

As a result, the Turkish military and political leadership slightly backtracked. In a new NOTAM issued earlier today, the Turkish government revised the previous notice. The new notice (No. 0900/15) replaced the original one (No 0889/15) by excluding lands of the Greek island of Lemnos from the area reserved for military use.
- See more at: http://greece.greekreporter.com/2015/03/02/turkey-revises-initial-notam-after-firm-greek-reaction/#sthash.e56Gm8sL.dpuf