The new terminal at the north’s Ercan (Tymbou) airport is set to open to passenger traffic on Friday, according to its ‘transport ministry’.

At 7:15pm on Thursday, the existing terminal, which opened in 2004, will be officially closed. The airport will then be out of action for just under 12 hours while people and equipment are transferred to the new terminal, which will officially open at 7am on Friday.

The transfer is set to take place a few hours after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan becomes the new terminal’s first passenger when he visits the north on Thursday. His arrival at the terminal will form part of its opening ceremony.

Erdogan is set to visit the north following trips to Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates this week.

In addition, in anticipation of an air show put on by the Turkish air force which is set to take place on Wednesday, the north has banned all private drone activity in its claimed airspace between 10:45am on Monday and 9pm on Wednesday.