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North Korea airspace may become no-fly zone for airlines
The airspace above and surrounding North Korea nay be declared a no-fly zone amid safety fears to commercial aircraft over its missile tests.
It comes after pilots of Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific Airways said they were close enough to see a missile in flight last week.
"The International Civil Aviation Organization could declare a no-fly zone. We are working with the ICAO on how we can protect these zones for flying," said IATA chief Alexandre de Juniac.
"The ICAO is trying to implement and ask North Korea to apply safety rules. If you look at the North Korean airspace, there are not too many aircraft overflying."
The ICAO criticized Pyongyang’s unannounced tests back in October and is required to comply with international aviation standards.
Few if any airlines fly directly over North Korea but there are busy air corridors surrounding the country.
Some European airlines have unilaterally changed flight routes in the area to steer further away from North Korean airspace, such as Lufthansa and Air France.
Singapore Airlines has also rerouted flight paths in the region.
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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