Cyprus to get €5 mln met radar service from Space Hellas SA

 The Cyprus Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment has signed a contract for the installation and operation of meteorological radar services from Space Hellas SA. by March 2014.

The contract worth €5.33 mln is valid for a 13-year period and the contractor is required to install, operate and maintain two meteorological radars near Larnaca and Paphos airports, and support with near real-time, radar imaging, and other information, the forecasting unit of the Meteorological Service.
The new contract is expected to enhance the services provided by the Meteorological Service for short range forecasting, warnings for dangerous weather, will increase the safety of the Nicosia Flight Information Region (FIR) overflights, and also the safety of inbound and outbound flights at Larnaca and Paphos airports.
The Meteorological Service is designated by the Civil Aviation Department as the air navigation service provider, based on the regulations of the Single European Sky and is also accredited by the National Supervisory Authority. The Met Service, that also provides meteorological and climatological data to the aviation and maritime community, as well as to the general public, gets a 64% refund from Eurocontrol towards the cost of air navigation services and, according to the government, the cost of the contract will be recovered gradually in time.