Airport in Stepanakert to start operation on May 9

On May 9, 2011, the Stepanakert Airport will be completely ready for operation, said the Division for Civil Aviation under the Government of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The airport will be able to serve 100 passengers per hour. At the initial stage, the only flight of the airport - Stepanakert-Yerevan-Stepanakert - will be made every second day; however, the terminal is designed with a prospect of flying in other directions. The passenger traffic will be carried out by the airline named "Air Artsakh", equipped with three 50-seat aircrafts model SRJ-200.

Azerbaijan, in its turn, tries to prevent establishment of international air flights by the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh. The official Baku promised to appeal to the International Civil Aviation Organization. "We'll not admit any unauthorized flights over the airspace of our country," said Magerram Safarli, head of the press service of the airline "AzAl".

Now, a resident of Nagorno-Karabakh, willing to go anywhere in the world, has to go from Stepanakert to Yerevan, since so far the communication of Nagorno-Karabakh with the outside world is made only via Armenia. The only road connecting Karabakh with Armenia runs through a complex mountain relief; in winter it is periodically closed because of fog and ice.