Filenews 30 August 2022
The possibility of a virtual tour of the once cosmopolitan Airport of Nicosia is offered by the online platform of the research program "NIC" of the Cyprus Institute, which was put into operation, giving life back to a space directly connected to the events of modern Cypriot history and awakening memories from the past.
As mentioned in an announcement, during the summer of 2021, a team of researchers of the Cyprus Institute, consisting of experts from the Art Characterization Laboratories "Andreas Pittas" (APAC) of the Research Center for Science and Technology in Archaeology and Culture (STARC) and the Unmanned Systems Research Laboratories (USRL) of the Research Center for Climate and Atmosphere (CARE-C), with the support of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), has completed the full digitization of Nicosia International Airport, which is currently in the buffer zone, and is not accessible to the public.
After the events of 1974, the Airport ceased its operation, with the surrounding area hosting the headquarters of UNFICYP. However, the main building still remains abandoned and left over time. Today, access to the Airport terminal is considered dangerous, due to chronic abandonment and lack of maintenance. Thanks to the "NIC" platform it is now possible to explore it, walking virtually in all its spaces, including offices, shops, public and forbidden spaces, reviving again an important part of Cypriot history.
After meticulous and long analysis and data processing, it is noted, the "NIC" platform now offers visitors the opportunity to virtually navigate all the accessible areas of the main terminal, the control tower, the hangar and three planes that remain stranded on the premises of Nicosia Airport.
In addition, the "NIC" platform has a collection of historical images and videos, transporting visitors back in time, when the airport was in full operation and was a place of attraction for thousands of locals and tourists.
The research project "NIC" (named after the IATA code of Nicosia Airport), focuses on an interdisciplinary process of three-dimensional modelling and visualization, developed to create interactive applications for virtual tours.
As mentioned, the logo of the "NIC" platform is inspired by the last flight that landed at Nicosia Airport, and was designed according to the baggage tags used by the carriers to transport the checked baggage to their final destinations. This is Cyprus Airways flight CY317, which departed from London via Rome on 19 July 1974, on a Hawker Siddeley HS-121 Trident 1E, registered at 5B-DAE, and was the last to land at Nicosia Airport. The purpose of the logo is to remind the public that Nicosia International Airport was once fully operational.
