ICAO corrects wrong information in Sanya FIR map as requested by Vietnam

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has corrected the map of a flight information region (FIR) that contains information violating Vietnam’s sovereignty, a fortnight after receiving a request from the Southeast Asian country.

The pink shape covers the Ho Chi Minh Flight Information Region.

The map of the Sanya FIR, which includes Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago, has been corrected as per the request from the Vietnamese side, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) said Friday.

On Wednesday, the chairman of the ICAO Council also sent a letter to the CAAV to inform of the rectification, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

The map previously contained the Chinese words of “Sansha city – China” and a symbol of an airport on Da Chu Thap (Fiery Cross) Reef in Truong Sa, with the English words “Yong Shu airport – Sansha.”

Vietnam has many times raised a voice protesting China’s establishment of the so-called “Sansha city” and its building of artificial islands and an airport in the area.

Such information on the map was therefore a violation of Vietnam’s sovereignty over Truong Sa and Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelagos, as well as an infringement on Vietnam’s legitimate rights in the East Vietnam Sea, the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokesman Le Hai Binh said on January 15.

Also on January 15, Vietnam issued a diplomatic note to affirm the country’s sovereignty over the Truong Sa and Hoang Sa archipelagos, protesting the wrong information on the Sanya FIR map, and requesting the Montreal-based ICAO to correct the map.

The diplomatic note was directly handed over to the chairman and general secretary of the ICAO Council by a representative of the Vietnamese Embassy in Canada on January 22, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

At the meeting, the Vietnamese Embassy representative also expressed concern on China’s flights to Da Chu Thap, which violates not only Vietnam’s sovereignty over Truong Sa but also flight safety regulations and standards of ICAO in the Ho Chi Minh FIR, which is overseen by Vietnam.

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