Cyprus court rules against Red Arrows

A Cyprus Court on Friday awarded an 11-year-old autistic boy from Limassol 251.800 Cypriot pounds in damages against the government for suffering caused by the Red Arrows, which hold annual aerobatics exercises out of the British air base of Akrotiri.

According to the Court ruling, the case was brought against the Cyprus government for failure to protect its citizens and especially those who had acoustic problems. The case was not brought against Britain, because under Cyprus Law the case could not be filed against a foreign state in a local Court.

Britain retains two sovereign military bases on the island since Cyprus gained independence from colonial rule in 1960.

The family of Alexandros Kostaki, who stays in the Tsirio area, sued against the Cyprus government when from 1990, his condition started to deteriorate and needed treatment of noise damage. They had complained to the government on several occasions but nothing had been done.

The Court agreed the boy had suffered actual bodily harm from the Red Arrow formation team flying over his home on a regular basis.

According to the ruling, the Cyprus government had the responsibility to take all necessary measures and forbid the flying of aircrafts on the Cyprus air-space and especially in residential areas.