(U) SULAYMANIYAH AIRPORT GOES INTERNATIONAL

UNCLAS KIRKUK 000293 SIPDIS SENSITIVE STATE FOR NEA/I BAGHDAD FOR POL, ECON, FCS, NCT, IRMO/TRANSPORT E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAIR ECON PGOV IZ IRMO SUBJECT: (U) SULAYMANIYAH AIRPORT GOES INTERNATIONAL REF: BAGHDAD 3994 (U) SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED; PROTECT ACCORDINGLY. NOT FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION. ¶1. (U) SUMMARY AND INTRODUCTION: Sulaymaniyah airport has begun international operations, with weekly flights to Amman and Dubai via Baghdad on Iraqi Airways. On December 10, the Turkish private airline Fly Air inaugurated its service to Istanbul. Other destinations are to be added shortly after the December 15 elections. Turkey has agreed to issue airport visas to Iraqi travelers arriving from Sulaymaniyah. END SUMMARY AND INTRODUCTION. ¶2. (U) Sulaymaniyah Airport Director General Kamaran Ahmed Abdullah proudly told Regional Coordinator and USAID representative December 11 that the new Sulaymaniyah airport was built by a Turkish contractor in only 15 months, at a cost of $38 million funded entirely by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). He said the runway is 3500 meters long and 45 meters wide, made of concrete 40-cm thick. He said the Iraqi Government had approved customs and immigration procedures in October and "last week the NOTAM office approved our getting the code." The terminal, which is quite small, will become the domestic terminal when a larger international terminal is built. Before the end of December, Fly Air will offer two flights per week to Istanbul, continuing on to Frankfurt and Stockholm, and weekly flights to Amsterdam and London. Another carrier, Jupiter, is proposing twice-weekly flights to Dubai. ¶3. (U) Kamaran highlighted Turkey's agreement to issue airport visas to Iraqis arriving from Sulaymaniyah. He said the arrangement is reciprocal, and that the Iraqi Ministry of Interior has been cooperative. ¶4. (SBU) COMMENT: With these developments, the KRG-Sulaymaniyah is catching up with its partner and rival, the KRG-Erbil, whose international airport has been functioning for some time. BELL