Sarajevo International Airport
by Zahid Krkic/News
Sarajevo - An important and complete
Transfer of Responsibility (ToR) took place in Sarajevo at the end of the
year. Indeed, the SFOR French DETAIR is handing over to Sarajevo International
Airport everything concerning air traffic services within Sarajevo terminal
control area and control traffic area, and airport operations including slot
and parking area management. The normalisation assessment is taking a big
step forward.Photo: Courtesy of DETAIR An aerial view of Sarajevo airport, in the western suburb of the Bosnian capital
From 1992 until 1995, during the war,
Sarajevo's airport was managed completely by the French. In July 1992, the
first setting up of the DETAIR took place in Sarajevo, few days after the
air-bridge opening. It was created in order to ensure the airport was operational
for the UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) and the UNPROFOR
(United Nations Protection Force). It had an important part during the war,
as much for the technical level and the human level. And that's of course
the reason why it was often a favourite target. The current DETAIR Commander,
Col. Jacques Robino, from the French Air Force, isn't in Sarajevo for the
first time. "I was here in 1995 as a Team Chief of the Tactical Air Close
Party, and then in 1996, and I noticed a big change: the canon fires stopped
as we use to say. And it was a great relief," he said. On Aug. 15, 1996, the
civilian flights started up again, and since that time, everything goes on
thanks to a complete co-operation between local people and SFOR soldiers.Photo: Courtesy of DETAIR An aerial view of the DETAIR during the war
Certain relief
"Since 1996, SFOR is giving back little
by little some missions to the civilian authorities," said French Capt. Philippe
Guyon, Air Traffic Control (ATC) Commander. This progressive handover isn't
so easy for everybody because the civilian aviation get back the control of
everything after a ten years of interruption. "It is a matter for the normalisation
assessment. Every military controller had to leave Sarajevo on Jan.1st, 2003.
We were prepared to leave, but we had particularly to prepare the civilian
controllers," added Guyon. So, about 20 Bosnian Air Traffic Controllers have
been trained since 1997, and the SFOR soldiers are very confident: "The young
are very motivated to re-build their country. We worked with different ethnic
groups, and there is no more animosity between them. The only thing that
they want to work for is the future of the country," told Guyon. He's aware
of having a special mission by being the last ATC Commander, and he hasn't
forgotten the previous ten years "This airport is full of history. Every
job done here is really palpable, anywhere I go."Photo: PO Steve Wood.Feb, 2002 - Maj. Gen. François de Goësbriand (background), then DCOMSFOR and Mr. Yves Lambert (on his left), Direction of BiH Civil Aviation's administrator, visit Zagreb Air Control Center.
So much history shared between the airport
and the DETAIR, between civilian and military, involves shared feelings. "It
is always sad to see a unit dissolved. It's special to live these last moments.
But it means that the peace comes back, the life is going on better and better,
and that is our best motivation," said Robino. It's also for a practical
reason: the moving. The ToR means also a transfer of the buildings. "There
were 250 persons two years ago, 110 at the beginning of December, and we
will be about 40 for one month in order to move everything." And even in these particular conditions, civilian and military continue to share a lot of things. For example, the DETAIR dining facilities closed on Dec.15, so some of the soldiers were eating at the airport. "All our habits changed. We don't have any more privacy, sport facilities, we're living closer to each other, but everybody is so busy with clearing ten years of existence, it doesn't matter."
In order to turn the page on these ten
years, some personalities had to sign contracts. The transfer of responsibility
from the SFOR to the local authorities took place at the end of last year.
The first contract, a technical arrangement was signed on Dec. 20 by Maj.
Gen. Jean-Pierre Meyer, DCOMSFOR, Mr Besim Mehmedic, Minister of Transport
and Communications of Federation of BiH, and Mr Bakir Karahasanovic, General
Manager of Sarajevo International Airport. It concerned all the ground handling
services. The second one, confirmed on Dec. 23, was an implementing arrangement
about Air traffic services and Air Operations. The General Manager gave to
the SFOR DETAIR the best congratulation by saying: "We will try to do as well
as the French soldiers did. We will be always grateful to them.""Our successors are able and competent. A big step to the normalisation is made, also thanks to what our predecessors did during 10 years in order to assume their mission, confided by the United Nations, the IFOR and the SFOR," concluded Robino. And the co-operation will go on since the civilian will now check the military personal at the airport.
Photo: Sgt. Diego Ropero Pastor.A big step to the normalisation assessment was made with the signature of a technical arrangement between Mr. Besim Mehmedic, Ministry of Transport and Communications of Federation of BiH, Mr. Bakir Karahasanovic, General Manager of Sarajevo International Airport, and Maj. Gen. Jean-Pierre Meyer, DCOMSFOR.
-15,000 movements each year from 1999 to 2001
- 300,000 civilians every year; 60,000 military every year
-Transit freight: 9t/day
-Civilian freight: 18t/day
-Approximately 85 VIPs each month
(A movement corresponds to a landing or a take-off).
SFOR Informer#155,
January 9, 2003