KABUL FIR UPDATED INFORMATION – 20 AĞUSTOS 2021

SAFETY BULLETIN

UPDATE 21SAB14.3

20 August 2021

Kabul FIR Updated Information Note: This Safety Bulletin represents a rapidly changing situation, updates may be published quickly. The version will be indicated in the numbering of the paper, this is the second version of the bulletin, originally published 17 August 2021.

IFALPA has received the following information via the Kabul FIR Contingency Coordination Team (CCT):

UPDATED: ENROUTE ATS AND AIS AIR TRAFFIC SERVICES (ATS) AVAILABILITY IN KABUL FIR CORRECTION: LIMITED ATS SUPPORTING VFR OPERATIONS AT KABUL/HAMAD KARZAI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AVAILABLE FOR ‘COMMERCIAL’ AVIATION NEW: REQUESTED MINIMUM FLIGHT LEVELS FOR FLIGHTS TRANSITING THE KABUL FIR UPDATED: AFGHANISTAN AIS UPDATED: PRESENTATION OF NOTAMS IN CCT BULLETINS UPDATED: LIMITED ON-GROUND TIME FOR FLIGHT OPERATIONS AT KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT NEW: ICAO AFGHANISTAN ATM CONTINGENCY 2021 WEB-PAGE SITREP at 20 August 2021, 0100 UTC

Afghanistan CAA CCT POCs have not responded to ICAO communications. Attempts to establish contact are continuing.

ENROUTE ATS in the Kabul FIR remains unavailable. Most flights are avoiding the

Kabul FIR.

CORRECTION (corrected information received direct from the source at Kabul): A limited procedural approach control service (no radar) and VFR aerodrome control service is being provided from a secondary tower at Kabul International Airport (OAKB). Air-ground communications are only available within the immediate terminal area. The military support services are seeking to establish a procedural arrival/departure advisory service in the vicinity of Kabul International Airport to help with civil/military de-confliction and flow to the airport. Establishment of this service will be reported by CCT Bulletin.

Military ATC are providing a limited Tower VFR service (no IFR services) from the alternate control tower on the North side with limited radios and no landline communications.

Secure ramp space at OAKB is very limited and aircraft are expected to remain on the ground only long enough to embark passengers and depart (less than one hour): Expect no more than 30 minutes of ground time. No fuel or services are available.

Due to the requirement to keep arriving/departing aircraft as high as possible, all flights transiting the Kabul FIR are requested to operate at or above FL300. Note: Kabul FIR ATM Contingency Plan also refers. https://acaa.gov.af/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Afghanistan-ATM-Contingency-Plan- V2.1-APR-2021.pdf

It is likely that neighbouring States especially Pakistan and Turkmenistan may encounter pop-up departure traffic from OAKB at the FIR boundary. Further consideration is being given to local procedure development, and may be the subject of a CCT video teleconference with ANSPs of neighbouring FIRs.

The status of Afghanistan AIS is not known Afghanistan AIS is not available. The following contingency-related NOTAM (now overdue for review) remains available on the Afghanistan AIS web portal (https://www.afgais.com):

(G1264/21 NOTAMN Q) OAKX/QAFAM/IV/NBO/E/000/999/ A) OAKX B) 2108160445 C) 2108180445 EST E) KABUL AIRSPACE HAS BEEN RELEASED TO THE MILITARY. ADVISE TRANSIT

AIRCRAFT TO REROUTE. ANY TRANSIT THROUGH KABUL AIRSPACE WILL BE UNCONTROLLED.

SURROUNDING FIRS HAVE BEEN ADVISED.)

All stakeholders are requested to note the information in this NOTAM aligns with NOTAMs provided in the USA DINS.

ICAO currently has no information on the expected continuity of this web-based NOTAM service provided by Afghanistan. The information provided by this service is not updated, and must therefore be treated with appropriate caution.

NOTAMs for Kabul FIR (OAKX) and Kabul International aerodrome (OAKB) have been published on the USA Defense Internet NOTAM Service (DINS, https://www.notams.faa.gov/dinsQueryWeb/).

ALL STAKEHOLDERS ARE URGED TO CHECK BOTH THE AFGHANISTAN AIS

PORTAL AND THE DINS SERVICE FOR NOTAM UPDATES UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.

Relevant NOTAMS downloaded from DINS at the time of publication of this bulletin are reproduced in Attachment A.

The military organizations managing the Prior Permission Required (PPR) programme for operations Kabul International Airport have emphasized the need for all flights to Kabul to strictly comply with the PPR process described in NOTAM OAKB A0006/21 and any subsequent NOTAM that updates the information. Flights that do not comply with the PPR process cannot be accommodated due to limited aircraft parking capacity.

Afghanistan has not notified ICAO of the formal activation of its ATM contingency plan. ICAO has not yet received any notification from Afghanistan or neighbouring States of the formal activation of any contingency plan.

All relevant States are urged to activate any contingency arrangements they may have relating to non-availability of ATS in the Kabul FIR.

All potentially affected States, particularly Bahrain, India, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Pakistan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and UAE, are urged to take into account the likelihood of increased non-normal traffic through your FIRs, or traffic operating on other than the usual ATS routes.

NOTAMs should be coordinated with neighbouring States and published at the earliest opportunity where specific ATS routing or other requirements for contingency traffic become necessary (particularly Afghanistan-neighbour States China, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan), and in accordance with any established contingency plan where applicable.

Afghanistan ATM Contingency 2021 Webpage

CCT Bulletins and other relevant ATM contingency-related information are now available on a dedicated webpage, accessible through the ICAO Asia/Pacific Regional Office website:

Regional Office website: https://www.icao.int/apac/Pages/default.aspx

Afghanistan ATM Contingency 2021 webpage:

https://www.icao.int/APAC/Meetings/Pages/2021-AFGH-ATM.aspx

ATTACHMENT A – RELEVANT NOTAMS AVAILABLE IN DINS AT 2108200100 UTC

KABUL FIR (OAKX) A0635/21 NOTAMR A0630/21 Q) OAKX/QAFAM/IV/NBO/E/000/999/ A) OAKX B) 2108180445 C) 2108201300 EST

E) FOLLOWING NOTAM IS ISSUED ON REQUEST OF KABUL ACC. DUE SECURITY REASON KABUL ACC IS RELEASED TO MILITARY.

NO ATS WILL BE AVBL . ACFT TANSITING THROUGHY KABUL FIR WILL BE FLYING IN

UN-CONTROLLED AIRSPACE AT THEIR OWN RISK.

1. TRAFFIC ON ATS ROUTE L750 TO CONTACT ON FREQ 134.5 MHZ AT POINT RANAH.

2. TRAFFIC ON ATS ROUTE N644 TO CONTACT ON FREQ 134.5 MHZ AT POINT LEMOD.

3. TRAFFIC ON ATS ROUTE A466 TO CONTACT ON FREQ 134.3 MHZ AT POINT AMDAR.

4. TRAFFIC ON ATS ROUTE P500 TO CONTACT ON FREQ 133.1 MHZ AT POINT

MOTMO.

CREATED: 18 Aug 2021 05:40:00

SOURCE: OPKCYNYX

Note: The above NOTAM was issued by Pakistan on behalf of Afghanistan.

KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (OAKB) A0003/21 NOTAMN Q) QAKX/QXXXX/IV/NBO/A/000/999/3433N06912E005 A) OAKB

B) 2108171925 C) 2111122359

E) DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY ENERGY MIDDLE EAST REQUEST ALL ACFT TAKE MAX FUEL AT HOME STATION BEFORE LDG AT HKIA IN ORDER TO PREVENT REFUELING ON THE GND DUE TO THE UNKNOWN AND LIMITED REFUELING CAPABILITY IMPOSED BY

THE CURRENT EVENTS UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. CREATED: 17 Aug 2021 19:45:00

SOURCE: OAKBYNYX

0006/21 NOTAMR A0004/21 Q) OAKX/QXXXX/IV/NBO/A/000/999/3433N06912E005 A) OAKB

B) 2108181337 C) 2109122359

E) KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT IS VFR ONLY AND OPEN TO COMMERCIAL AND MILITARY AVIATION. WHEN THE AIRFIELD IS OPEN, KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT IS A PPR REQUIRED AIRFIELD. PPR REQUEST FORM IS LOCATED AT HTTP: // ACAA.GOV.AF/ WP-CONTENT/ UPLOADS/2017 /09/ KABUL-APRON-8-PPR-FORM-15-OCT-16.XLS SEND PPR REQUESTS TO HKIAPPRS@GMAIL.COM AND ISAFKIAAIROPSPPRNU@HQ.RS.NATO.INT. FOR PPR APPROVAL CONTACT THE KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AIRFIELD MANAGER TO OBTAIN A PPR AT +93700133903 OR +93700133902. LANDING AT THE AIRPORT WITHOUT A PPR IS DENIED EXCEPT IN THE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY. AIRCRAFT MUST ARRIVE WITHIN

30 MINUTES OF PPR APPROVED ARRIVAL TIME OR RE-COORDINATE FOR A NEW PPR.

LANDING AT THE AIRPORT CAN ONLY OCCUR BY AN APPROVED PPR OBTAINED FROM THE KABUL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AIRFIELD MANAGER. ALL LANDING

AIRCRAFT EXPECT TO PARK ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE AIRFIELD. NO ADDITIONAL SERVICES AVAILABLE AT THE AIRFIELD.

F) SFC G) UNL

CREATED: 18 Aug 2021 14:28:00

SOURCE: OAKBYNYX

A0007/21 NOTAMN Q) OAKX/QXXXX/IV/NBO/A/000/999/3433N06912E005 A) OAKB

B) 2108181840 C) 2109122359 E) AIR STAIRS UNAVAILABLE FOR WIDE BODY AIRCRAFT. CREATED: 18 Aug 2021 18:47:00

SOURCE: OAKBYNYX

A0008/21 NOTAMN Q) OAKX/QXXXX/IV/NBO/A/000/999/3433N06912E005 A) OAKB

B) 2108181830 C) 2109122359 E) RUNWAY 29/11 APPROACH LIGHTS AND RUNWAY EDGE LIGHTS OTS.

F) SFC G) UNL

CREATED: 18 Aug 2021 18:47:00 SOURCE: OAKBYNYX

A0009/21 NOTAMR A0005/21

Q) OAKX/QXXXX/IV/NBO/A/000/999/3433N06912E005 A) OAKB

B) 2108191040 C) 2109122359

E) CONTACT KINGFISH WHISKEY (FREQ UHF 229.7 OR 318.35; VHF 124.25 OR 122.35) 30

MINUTES PRIOR TO ARRIVAL WITH PPR NUMBER. CREATED: 19 Aug 2021 10:44:00

SOURCE: OAKBYNYX

A0010/21 NOTAMN Q) OAKX/QXXXX/IV/NBO/A/000/999/3433N06912E005 A) OAKB

B) 2108191040 C) 2109122359 E) ALL AIRCRAFT CAN EXPECT ERO (ENGINE REMAIN ON). CREATED: 19 Aug 2021 10:47:00

SOURCE: OAKBYNYX

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