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2024-02-21 Africa Horn

[ShabelleMedia] Over the weekend, OPSGROUP has received at least 10 reports of aircraft within the Mogadishu FIR being contacted by a ‘fake controller’ on the same frequency, issuing conflicting instructions.

Crews have been issued climb and descent clearances that are not from the sector controller. Incidents have been reported mostly in the northern part of Mogadishu airspace.

The situation emanates from a political dispute between Somaliland and Somalia, two different countries, though the former does not have international recognition. Both countries now claim authority over the Mogadishu FIR.

The background to the situation is an escalating political dispute between Somaliland and Somalia. Somaliland has been an independent country since 1991, but without international recognition. Somaliland has to date maintained control over its airports, but Somalia controls the upper airspace from Mogadishu.

In January 2024, Ethiopia signed an agreement with Somaliland, essentially exchanging port rights on the Red Sea for recognition of their country. This was met with condemnation by Somalia. Somalia, in response, began restricting movements into Somaliland by way of denying airspace entry to the Mogadishu FIR in some instances. This has led to Somaliland declaring its right to exercise control over their airspace.

The net result is an airspace dispute between the two territories. Both Somalia and Somaliland now claim the right to control traffic. This is why crews have been contacted by other “controllers” on 132.5 (VHF) and 11300 (HF). Although it is likely that these other “controllers” are genuine Air Traffic Controllers, they are operating outside their area of jurisdiction as things stand.

Currently, the authority over the entire Mogadishu FIR is Mogadishu Control. They remain the sole authority to control, coordinate, and provide ATS services in the Upper FIR. The secondary transmissions are coming from Hargeisa in Somaliland. Although the motive for these transmissions can be understood, they present clear danger to enroute traffic. The transmissions appear to attempt to mimic Mogadishu rather than present as “Hargeisa Control”, “Somaliland Control”, or any clear differentiator from Mogadishu.

It would also appear from the reports that we have received, that the control instructions are not being issued to de-conflict traffic, but rather to create confusion. This may be an effort to draw attention to the airspace issue, but could have tragic consequences. For flight crews, we follow with some guidance to mitigate the situation.

The situation is volatile and may escalate. On Sunday, February 18, an AIS Officer from Somaliland, working in Mogadishu, was found dead at his home. His death appears related to this situation.

Somalia accuses northern region of disrupting airspace

[Garowe] Somalia has rebuked the northern region of Somaliland

...Republic of Somaliland is an unrecognised sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, recognised internationally as a de jure part of Somalia. It is located in the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden with approximately 5.7 million residents as of 2021. The capital and largest city is Hargeisa. The government regards itself as the successor state to British Somaliland, which united from 1960 to 1991 with the Trust Territory of Somaliland (the former Italian Somaliland) to form the Somali Republic. Under the Siad Barre regime, Somaliadestroyed ninety percent of Hargeisa Per international law, once you're in, you gotta stay in, no matter how bad it smells....
for what it called 'unwarranted' disruptions of its airspace, in what could trigger yet another conflict, in the middle of simmering tensions within the Horn of Africa.

Somaliland broke away from Somalia but it has never been internationally recognized and remains part of Somalia’s terrorism integrity and illusory sovereignty. The prolonged conflict has escalated in recent times, following Somaliland’s deal with Æthiopia, which will see the latter get a portion of the Red Sea.

On Monday, the Somali Civil Aviation Authority said it had taken tougher measures to control the country's airspace. This action, it noted, follows the disruption of air traffic services over specific areas in the northern regions, deemed a violation of domestic and international aviation regulations.

The SCAA expresses concern that these disruptions were initiated by the administration of the northwest regions, potentially motivated by "external influences and self-serving interests." It did not mention entities believed to be behind disruptions.

According to the Somali government, it has consistently issued warnings and notifications to uphold flight safety, urging cooperation from the regional administration. However,
there's more than one way to stuff a chicken...
these warnings have reportedly been disregarded, the statement reads.

"The Somali government remains committed to ensuring the safety and security of its airspace," stated the SCAA in a blurb.

"We have proactively issued warnings and notifications to all relevant parties, including the international community. Unfortunately, the regional administration has not responded as expected."

The SCAA emphasized that further actions may be necessary to safeguard Somali Civil Aviation. "The Somali government will have to take tougher measures to ensure the security and the safety of Somali Civil Aviation," they said.

Last month, Somalia’s civil aviation authority changed the channel of communication with airlines using Somalia airspace after reporting "VHF interference [on frequency] within the vicinity of Hargeisa" as a source put it.

Flights within the area have been informed not to expect level change unless they are in contact with Mogadishu via datalink, the source said. The protracted tensions have caught the attention of the international community, which is pushing for dialogue between Æthiopia and Somalia.

Posted by trailing wife 2024-02-21 00:00|| || Front Page|| [34 views ] Top

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