Monday Briefing: Darwin closed, Ukraine Uncertainty

YPDN/Darwin closure after Indonesia Eruption 02JUN Darwin Airport closed this weekend due to a large volcanic eruption form Sangean Volcano in Central Indonesia. The plume initially reached FL100 before drifting south. Some flights started operating again Monday.

Ukraine Uncertainty Continues 02JUN Following a further week of unrest in Ukraine, per Eurocontrol the following airports still remain closed: UKCC/Donetsk, UKFF/Simferopol, UKFB/Sevastopol, UKCM/Mariupol.

HEAT/Asyut, Egypt will be closed until at least May 2015 due to renovations.

OIIE/Tehran, Iran In remembrance of the 25th anniversary of the death of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini all air traffic in the Tehran province will cease from 0745 until 1200 local time (0315-0730 UTC) on 4 June 2014. The air traffic suspension will affect eight airports.

HRYR/ Kigali, Rwanda Rwy closed 0000-0430Z until 11Jun due repairs.

Indonesia Sangean Volcano in central Indonesia erupted Friday 30MAY, initial plume to FL100, traffic in Brisbane, Melbourne FIR’s also affected. YPDN/Darwin was closed for the weekend and slowly reopening Monday 02JUN. Local airports nearby also closed, 7000 evacuated.

EGNS/Isle of Man Red Arrows Display 03JUN at 1815Z, all movements at EGNS suspended during this time; delays expected.

RCKH/Kaohsiung, China The ATC folks are running a 2 hour tower evacuation drill during the afternoon of 12JUN. Delays are expected.

Libya – Due to ongoing security issues HLLS/Sebha remains closed until 10JUN, and HLLB/Benina closed until 15JUN, earliest.

TNCC/Curcacao will be closed daily from 0300-1100Z 09JUN until 27JUN

UKOV/Odesa FIR A new VHF Volmet is in operation from 01JUN on 126.375, reports available for Odesa and Simferopol FIRs, and Odesa, Kyiv, Chisinau, Bucharest, Constanta, and Istanbul.

VDPP/Phnom Penh Flight checks – delays can be expected for arrivals and departures. JUN 03-08 0200-1000Z.

DTTC/Tunis Flight crews are warned that they may encounter laser beams or other bright lights in flight.

Mexico Effective 25APR there are some significant changes to the Mexico Permit process. 1. No charter operations will be allowed to operate to Mexico as a private non-revenue flight – all flights are treated as charter. 2. Operators can apply for blanket permits to cover the fleet, but these take 3-4 months. 3. Single Trip Permits can be approved within 5 days. 4. These permits allow for the operator to fly to multiple destinations within Mexico, as long as no new passengers are acquired throughout the trip.

Greek Islands A Eurocontrol phone conference with Aircraft Operators was held on 28MAY to discuss the restrictions this coming summer. You can listen to a playback of the recording here.

Wallis and Futuna Customs and Immigration now require 48 hours PN at NLWW for all international flights.

Russia Not strictly aviation specific but effective 01JUN Russia has banned smoking in all restaurants, cafes, bars, and airports, trains, hotels, and ships.