Air traffic controllers have again threatened to strike at Ercan Airport

The Air Traffic Controllers Union of Northern Cyprus (HTKS) has announced its intention to hold a strike at Ercan Airport. The protest action may take place after May 4.

The president of the union, Cem Kapysyz, warned that air traffic controllers would go on strike if allowances to staff were not paid at the current exchange rate.

In his written statement, the head of the Union explained that allowances to Department of Civil Aviation employees, who have been undergoing basic air traffic management training in Ankara since January of this year, have not yet been paid. He also shared a letter they sent to the Ministry of Civil Aviation.

"Despite our repeated warnings, the government is not fulfilling its legal obligations. We are giving you until May 4, the last day of the strike ban imposed at Ercan, to settle all outstanding debts to the staff, starting from January, at the current exchange rate," the statement reads.

The statement also said that if the necessary legal obligations were not met, a new strike process would commence as soon as the relevant ban was lifted.

Recall that earlier, the Air Traffic Controllers Union of Northern Cyprus (HTKS) announced a strike at Ercan Airport in early March. However, the protest action ended without even starting. The Council of Ministers of Northern Cyprus, by its decision, postponed the strike for 60 days.

After the decision was published in the Official Gazette and came into force, the strike at the air traffic control unit of Ercan Airport was canceled due to its "destructive nature for civil aviation."