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62-728: Raw METAR is the most common format in the world for the transmission of observational weather data. It is highly standardized through the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), which allows it to be understood throughout most of the world. In its publication the Aeronautical Information Manual , the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) describes the report as aviation routine weather report , while

124-589: A pilot report or PIREP, colour states and runway visual range (RVR). In addition, a short period forecast called a TREND may be added at the end of the METAR covering likely changes in weather conditions in the two hours following the observation. These are in the same format as a Terminal Aerodrome Forecast (TAF). The complement to METARs, reporting forecast weather rather than current weather, are TAFs. METARs and TAFs are used in VOLMET broadcasts. METAR code

186-475: A seamless global air traffic management system. ICAO has published standards for machine-readable passports . Machine-readable passports have an area where some of the information otherwise written in textual form is also written as strings of alphanumeric characters, printed in a manner suitable for optical character recognition , which enables border controllers and other law enforcement agents to process such passports more quickly without having to enter

248-406: A capacity of 2,700,000 passengers and an area of 20,000 square metres (220,000 sq ft). The new terminal building was designed so that it can be easily upgraded to further increase capacity, if necessary. Construction of the new terminal was completed in 2013, and has been operational since December 2013. Terminal 2 replaced the older Terminal 1, which was built in the 1950s and expanded in

310-477: A direct party to ICAO, its government delegated Switzerland to enter into the treaty on its behalf, and the treaty is applicable in the territory of Liechtenstein. The Republic of China was a founding member of ICAO. Following its retreat to Taiwan , it was eventually replaced by the People's Republic of China as the legal representative of China in 1971. In 2013, Taiwan was for the first time invited to attend

372-638: A model of the standard variation of pressure , temperature , density , and viscosity with altitude in the Earth's atmosphere . This is useful in calibrating instruments and designing aircraft. The standardized pressure is also used in calibrating instruments in-flight, particularly above the transition altitude . ICAO is active in infrastructure management, including communication, navigation and surveillance / air traffic management (CNS/ATM) systems, which employ digital technologies (like satellite systems with various levels of automation) in order to maintain

434-403: A myth. Taking a plane is the fastest and cheapest way to fry the planet and this deal won't reduce demand for jet fuel one drop. Instead offsetting aims to cut emissions in other industries, although another critic called it "a timid step in the right direction." Burgas Airport Burgas Airport ( IATA : BOJ , ICAO : LBBG ) is an international airport in southeast Bulgaria and

496-472: A radio station and signed a contract with the Bulgarian government for its use. The contract expressly stated that the staff of Burgas Airport would be Bulgarian. On 29 June 1947, Balkan Bulgarian Airlines began domestic flights between Burgas, Plovdiv and Sofia , using Junkers Ju 52/3m aircraft. In the 1950s and 1960s, the airport was expanded and modernized by building a concrete runway. In 1970,

558-697: A staffed location, a report known as a special ( SPECI ) may be issued. Some stations make regular reports more frequently, such as Pierce County Airport (ICAO code: KPLU) which issues reports three times per hour. Some METARs are encoded by automated airport weather stations located at airports, military bases, and other sites. Some locations still use augmented observations, which are recorded by digital sensors, encoded via software, and then reviewed by certified weather observers or forecasters prior to being transmitted. Observations may also be taken by trained observers or forecasters who manually observe and encode their observations prior to transmission. The METAR format

620-583: A strictly operational and non-political point of view, I believe Taiwan should be there." The ICAO Council is elected by the Assembly every three years and consists of 36 members elected in three groups. The present council was elected in October 2022. The structure of the present Council is as follows: The Air Navigation Commission (ANC) is the ICAO Council technical executive body in charge of 17 of

682-453: A tweet stating that publishers of "irrelevant, compromising and offensive material" would be "precluded". Since that action, the organization has followed a policy of blocking anyone asking about it. The United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs harshly criticized ICAO's perceived failure to uphold principles of fairness, inclusion, and transparency by silencing non-disruptive opposing voices. Senator Marco Rubio also criticized

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744-404: Is PAMR.) Not all airports are assigned codes in both systems; for example, airports that do not have airline service do not need an IATA code. ICAO also assigns three-letter airline codes versus the more-familiar two-letter IATA codes—for example, UAL vs. UA for United Airlines . ICAO also provides telephony designators to aircraft operators worldwide, a one- or two-word designator used on

806-657: Is also a 550 square metres (5,900 sq ft) outdoor courtyard. The runway is 3,200 metres (10,500 ft) long. On 31 October 2016, reconstruction and rehabilitation of taxiways began at Burgas airport. The project includes a complete rehabilitation of 3,500 square meters of taxiway "H", complete rehabilitation of taxiway "A", as well as area adjacent to the runway holding point. The control and monitoring system for airfield lighting and approach light equipment will be replaced. The total investment of Fraport Twin Star Airport Management in these projects

868-474: Is located in front of the Arrivals Terminal at Burgas Airport. A taxi ride from Burgas Airport to the city takes approximately 15 minutes, depending on the traffic intensity.The prices start from €25 depending where in the city you need to go. Passengers and guests arriving at Burgas Airport with their personal car can use the commercially available parking lot, located in the immediate vicinity of

930-417: Is over BGN 12 million. The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Burgas Airport: Line No 15 connects Burgas airport with Burgas South bus station. Intercity buses from Burgas to Pomorie , Aheloy , Ravda , Nessebar and Sunny beach also stop close to the airport. The stop is located at the roundabout on the main road across from the terminal building. The Taxi Piazza

992-787: Is pressing ahead with its plans to include aviation. ICAO has been called "flawed and biased in favour of the industry" by Jo Dardenne, the manager for aviation at Transport & Environment . On 6 October 2016, the ICAO finalized an agreement among its 191 member nations to address the more than 1000 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emitted annually by international passenger and cargo flights. The agreement will use an offsetting scheme called CORSIA (the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation) under which forestry and other carbon-reducing activities are directly funded, amounting to about 2% of annual revenues for

1054-815: Is regulated by the World Meteorological Organization in consort with the International Civil Aviation Organization. In the United States, the code is given authority (with some U.S. national differences from the WMO/ICAO model) under the Federal Meteorological Handbook No. 1 (FMH-1), which paved the way for the U.S. Air Force Manual 15-111 on Surface Weather Observations, being the authoritative document for

1116-556: The Boeing 747 -100, -200 and -300 are given the type designators B741 , B742 and B743 respectively. Since 2010, ICAO recommends a unification of units of measurement within aviation based on the International System of Units (SI), using: Non-SI units have been permitted for temporary use since 1979, but a termination date has not yet been established, which would complete metrication of worldwide aviation, and

1178-516: The Convention on International Civil Aviation . The Air Navigation Commission (ANC) is the technical body within ICAO. The commission is composed of 19 commissioners, nominated by the ICAO's contracting states and appointed by the ICAO Council. Commissioners serve as independent experts, who although nominated by their states, do not serve as state or political representatives. International Standards and Recommended Practices are developed under

1240-896: The International Air Transport Association (IATA), a trade association representing airlines ; the Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO), an organization for air navigation service providers (ANSPs); and the Airports Council International , a trade association of airport authorities . In addition there are several regional civil aviation commissions, such as the Latin America Civil Aviation Commission (LACAC) who focus on challenges and growth in specific regions. The forerunner to ICAO

1302-514: The Quartier international de Montréal of Montreal , Quebec, Canada. The ICAO Council adopts standards and recommended practices concerning air navigation, its infrastructure, flight inspection , prevention of unlawful interference, and facilitation of border-crossing procedures for international civil aviation . ICAO defines the protocols for air accident investigation that are followed by transport safety authorities in countries signatory to

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1364-544: The cloud types used in the 8/nnn part. International Civil Aviation Organization The International Civil Aviation Organization ( ICAO / ˌ aɪ ˈ k eɪ oʊ / eye- KAY -oh ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international air transport to ensure safe and orderly growth. The ICAO headquarters are located in

1426-547: The 19 Annexes to the Chicago Convention. ANC develops and recommend ICAO minimal standards that are related to these Annexes. To review and/or finalize the ongoing developments the commission meets for three sessions per year. Each session normally considers a number of documents being developments of ANC expert Panels. The ANC is composed of nineteen commissioners nominated by ICAO States in various aviation domains. However, legally these commissioners do not represent

1488-406: The 2020 level, allowing unregulated growth until then. Only 65 nations will participate in the initial voluntary period, not including significant emitters Russia, India and perhaps Brazil. The agreement does not cover domestic emissions, which are 40% of the global industry's overall emissions. One observer of the ICAO convention made this summary: Airline claims that flying will now be green are

1550-474: The Chicago Convention, in Chicago , was signed by 52 countries on 7 December 1944. Under its terms, a Provisional International Civil Aviation Organization was to be established, to be replaced in turn by a permanent organization when twenty-six countries ratified the convention. PICAO began operating on 6 June 1945, replacing ICAN. The 26th country ratified the convention on 5 March 1947 and, consequently, PICAO

1612-668: The Convention on International Civil Aviation. Altitude, elevation, height. ICAO has a headquarters, seven regional offices, and one regional sub-office: Emissions from international aviation are specifically excluded from the targets agreed under the Kyoto Protocol . Instead, the Protocol invites developed countries to pursue the limitation or reduction of emissions through the International Civil Aviation Organization. ICAO's environmental committee continues to consider

1674-579: The ICAO Assembly, at its 38th session, as a guest under the name of " Chinese Taipei ". As of September 2019 , it has not been invited to participate again, due to renewed PRC pressure. The host government, Canada , supports Taiwan's inclusion in ICAO. Support also comes from Canada's commercial sector with the president of the Air Transport Association of Canada saying in 2019 that "It's about safety in aviation so from

1736-649: The ICAO code for Los Angeles International Airport is KLAX. Canada follows a similar pattern, where a prefix of C is usually added to an IATA code to create the ICAO code. For example, Calgary International Airport is YYC or CYYC. (In contrast, airports in Hawaii are in the Pacific region and so have ICAO codes that start with PH ; Kona International Airport 's code is PHKO. Similarly, airports in Alaska have ICAO codes that start with PA . Merrill Field , for instance

1798-488: The ICAO triennial conference to Doha was defeated by a vote of 22–14. In January 2020, ICAO blocked several Twitter users, including think-tank analysts, U.S. Congressional staff, and journalists, who mentioned Taiwan in tweets related to ICAO. Many of the tweets were related to the COVID-19 pandemic and Taiwan's exclusion from ICAO safety and health bulletins due to pressure from China . In response, ICAO issued

1860-622: The International Flight Network, Philbin refused to acknowledge the existence of Taiwan. On 1 February 2020, the United States Department of State issued a press release heavily criticizing ICAO's actions, characterizing them as "outrageous, unacceptable, and not befitting of a UN organization." The 9th edition of the Convention on International Civil Aviation includes modifications from years 1948 up to 2006. ICAO refers to its current edition of

1922-649: The Kyoto targets agreed by countries. This has led to some national policies such as fuel and emission taxes for domestic air travel in the Netherlands and Norway , respectively. Although some countries tax the fuel used by domestic aviation, there is no duty on kerosene used on international flights. ICAO is currently opposed to the inclusion of aviation in the European Union Emission Trading Scheme (EU ETS). The EU , however,

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1984-757: The U.S. Armed Forces. A very similar code form to the METAR is the SPECI. Both codes are defined at the technical regulation level in WMO Technical Regulation No. 49, Vol II, which is copied over to the WMO Manual No. 306 and to ICAO Annex III. Although the general format of METARs is a global standard, the specific fields used within that format vary somewhat between general international usage and usage within North America. Note that there may be minor differences between countries using

2046-717: The US, FAA practices require the digits of the flight number to be spoken in group format ("Japan Air One Eleven" in the above example) while individual digits are used for the aircraft tail number used for unscheduled civil flights. ICAO maintains the standards for aircraft registration , including the alphanumeric codes that identify the country of registration. ICAO is also responsible for issuing two to four character alphanumeric aircraft type designators for those aircraft types which are most commonly provided with air traffic service. These codes provide an abbreviated aircraft type identification, typically used in flight plans . For example,

2108-523: The United States and can vary significantly. In Canada, RMK is followed by a description of the cloud layers and opacities, in eighths ( oktas ). For example, CU5 would indicate a cumulus layer with 5 ⁄ 8 opacity. Cloud coverage is reported by the number of ' oktas ' (eighths) of the sky that is occupied by cloud. This is reported as: METARs can be expressed concisely using so-called aviation flight categories , which indicates what classes of flight can operate at each airport by referring to

2170-647: The WMO (who write the code on behalf of ICAO) FM 15-XII code. Details are listed in the FAA's Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM), but the non-compliant elements are mostly based on the use of non-standard units of measurement. This METAR example is from Trenton-Mercer Airport near Trenton , New Jersey , and was taken on 5 December 2003 at 18:53 UTC. METAR KTTN 051853Z 04011KT 1/2SM VCTS SN FZFG BKN003 OVC010 M02/M02 A3006 RMK AO2 TSB40 SLP176 P0002 T10171017= Note that what follows are not part of standard observations outside of

2232-775: The airline industry, such as the Aeronautical Message Handling System (AMHS). This makes it a standards organization . Each country should have an accessible Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP), based on standards defined by ICAO, containing information essential to air navigation . Countries are required to update their AIP manuals every 28 days and so provide definitive regulations, procedures and information for each country about airspace and airports. ICAO's standards also dictate that temporary hazards to aircraft must be regularly published using NOTAMs . ICAO defines an International Standard Atmosphere (also known as ICAO Standard Atmosphere),

2294-726: The airport became an international airport serving 45 destinations. Burgas airport has been subject to heavy traffic following the growing tourism industry in Bulgaria and was in need of major investments to expand and handle projected passenger traffic. In June 2006, the Bulgarian Government awarded Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide a 40-year-long concession on both Varna and Burgas airports in return for investments exceeding €500 million. Fraport entered into partnership with Varna-based company BM Star. The concessionaire has vowed to inject 403 million Euro in

2356-400: The base METAR code as adopted by the WMO member countries. A typical METAR contains data for the temperature , dew point , wind direction and speed, precipitation , cloud cover and heights, visibility , and barometric pressure . A METAR may also contain information on precipitation amounts, lightning , and other information that would be of interest to pilots or meteorologists such as

2418-458: The code LFPO (the 3rd letter sometimes refers to the particular flight information region (FIR) or the last two may be arbitrary). In most parts of the world, ICAO and IATA codes are unrelated; for example, Charles de Gaulle Airport has an IATA code of CDG. However, the location prefix for the continental United States is K , and ICAO codes are usually the IATA code with this prefix. For example,

2480-529: The convention as the Statute and designates it as ICAO Document 7300/9. The convention has 19 Annexes that are listed by title in the article Convention on International Civil Aviation . As of April 2019 , there are 193 ICAO members, consisting of 192 of the 193 UN members (all but Liechtenstein , which lacks an international airport), plus the Cook Islands . Despite Liechtenstein not being

2542-506: The deal was mixed. The agreement has critics. It is not aligned with the 2015 Paris climate agreement, which set the objective of restricting global warming to 1.5 to 2 °C. A late draft of the agreement would have required the air transport industry to assess its share of global carbon budgeting to meet that objective, but the text was removed in the agreed version. CORSIA will regulate only about 25 percent of aviation's international emissions, since it grandfathers all emissions below

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2604-488: The direction of the ANC through the formal process of ICAO Panels. Once approved by the commission, standards are sent to the council, the political body of ICAO, for consultation and coordination with the member states before final adoption. ICAO is distinct from other international air transport organizations, particularly because it alone is vested with international authority (among signatory states): other organizations include

2666-618: The early 1990s, and now handles all of the airport's passenger traffic. The terminal is equipped with 31 check-in counters , three boarding-card checkpoints, nine security lanes and eight departure gates. The arrivals area (divided into Schengen and non-Schengen zones) has 12 immigration stations and four baggage carousels (one 120 metres (390 ft) long and three 70 metres (230 ft) long carousels). Passenger amenities include 800 square metres (8,600 sq ft) of space dedicated to shopping and 1,220 square metres (13,100 sq ft) for food and beverage (F&B) services. There

2728-1102: The following units are still in widespread use within commercial aviation: inches of mercury are used in Japan and North America to measure pressure, although sometimes METAR at Japanese airports show only hPa . Aviation in Russia and China currently use km/h for reporting airspeed, and many present-day European glider planes also indicate airspeed in kilometres per hour. China and North Korea use metres for reporting altitude when communicating with pilots. Russia also formerly used metres exclusively for reporting altitude, but in 2011 changed to feet for high altitude flight. From February 2017, Russian airspace started transitioning to reporting altitude in feet only. Runway lengths are now commonly given in metres worldwide, except in North America where feet are commonly used. The following table summarizes units commonly used in flight and ground operations and their recommended replacement. A full list of recommended units can be found in annex 5 to

2790-483: The ground. This example value equals 23.4 °C (74 °F) and 12.3 °C (54 °F). This example indicates a rising tendency of 0.6 millibars (0.018 inHg). This example shows 1.23 inches (31 mm) of rain. This example shows 2.46 inches (62 mm) of rain. This example indicates 60 minutes of sunshine. This example indicates 22.2 inches (560 mm) of snowfall. This example indicates 2.1 inches (53 mm) SWE. The following codes identify

2852-498: The information manually into a computer. ICAO's technical standard for machine-readable passports is contained in Document 9303 Machine Readable Travel Documents . A more recent standard covers biometric passports . These contain biometrics to authenticate the identity of travellers. The passport's critical information is stored on a tiny RFID computer chip, much like information stored on smart cards . Like some smart cards,

2914-401: The interest of their State or any particular State or region. They have to conduct independently in the interest of the entire international civil aviation community. Additionally, several other representatives from ICAO States and up to eight members from the civil aviation industry may be invited to take part in ANC meetings as observers. ICAO also standardizes certain functions for use in

2976-722: The international authority for the code form, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), describes it as the aerodrome routine meteorological report. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (part of the United States Department of Commerce ) and the United Kingdom's Met Office both employ the definition used by the FAA. METAR is also known as Meteorological Terminal Aviation Routine Weather Report or Meteorological Aerodrome Report . METARs typically come from airports or permanent weather observation stations . Reports are generated once an hour or half-hour at most stations, but if conditions change significantly at

3038-615: The international codes as there are between those using the North American conventions. The two examples which follow illustrate the primary differences between the two METAR variations. The following is an example METAR from Burgas Airport in Burgas , Bulgaria . It was taken on 4 February 2005 at 16:00 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). METAR LBBG 041600Z 12012MPS 090V150 1400 R04/P1500N R22/P1500U +SN BKN022 OVC050 M04/M07 Q1020 NOSIG 8849//91= North American METARs deviate from

3100-559: The move. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Taiwan) (MOFA) and Taiwanese legislators criticized the move with MOFA head Jaushieh Joseph Wu tweeting in support of those blocked. In January 2020, Anthony Philbin, Chief of Communications for the ICAO Secretary General, defended ICAO's actions, stating, 'We felt completely justified in taking steps to protect the integrity of the information and discussions that our followers reasonably expect from our feeds.' In exchanges with

3162-540: The passport book design calls for an embedded contactless chip that is able to hold digital signature data to ensure the integrity of the passport and the biometric data. Both ICAO and IATA have their own airport and airline code systems. ICAO uses 4-letter airport codes (vs. IATA's 3-letter codes ). The ICAO code is based on the region and country of the airport—for example, Charles de Gaulle Airport has an ICAO code of LFPG, where L indicates Southern Europe, F , France, PG , Paris de Gaulle, while Orly Airport has

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3224-405: The potential for using market-based measures such as trading and charging, but this work is unlikely to lead to global action. It is currently developing guidance for states who wish to include aviation in an emissions trading scheme (ETS) to meet their Kyoto commitments, and for airlines who wish to participate voluntarily in a trading scheme. Emissions from domestic aviation are included within

3286-457: The radio, usually, but not always, similar to the aircraft operator name. For example, the identifier for Japan Airlines International is JAL and the designator is Japan Air , but Aer Lingus is EIN and Shamrock . Thus, a Japan Airlines flight numbered 111 would be written as "JAL111" and pronounced "Japan Air One One One" on the radio, while a similarly numbered Aer Lingus would be written as "EIN111" and pronounced "Shamrock One One One". In

3348-475: The second largest in the country. It is near the northern neighbourhood of Sarafovo approximately 10 km (6.2 mi) from the city centre. The airport principally serves Burgas and other seaside resorts of the Bulgarian south coast which attract many tourists during the summer leisure season. On 27 June 1937, the French company CIDNA (now part of Air France ), chose the area of Burgas Airport to build

3410-414: The sector. Rules against 'double counting' should ensure that existing forest protection efforts are not recycled. The scheme did not take effect until 2021 and will be voluntary until 2027, but many countries, including the US and China, have promised to begin at its 2020 inception date. Under the agreement, the global aviation emissions target is a 50% reduction by 2050 relative to 2005. NGO reaction to

3472-620: The top of the last hour." Combinations of two precipitation types are accepted; e.g. , RASN ( Rain and snow mixed ), SHGSSN etc . TS, SH, FG, DS, SS, VA, PO, FC, BLSN, BLDU, BLSA TS, RA, FZRA, SN, BLSN, GR, GS, PL ( e.g.: METAR ... Q1010 RERA= ) The following METAR abbreviations are used in the United States; some are used worldwide: METAR and TAF Abbreviations and Acronyms: Additional METAR numeric codes listed after RMK. This example value equals −23.4 °C (−10 °F). This example value equals 12.3 °C (54 °F). This example value equals 12 inches of snow currently on

3534-402: The two airports during the lifespan of the arrangement. Fraport will pay 60% of an investment of EUR 403 million over the 35-year concession. The investments will be made in new terminal facilities, vehicles and equipment and expanding apron areas at the airports over the life of the concession. In December 2011, construction work began on the new Terminal 2. The new terminal was planned to have

3596-427: The visibility and ceiling in each METAR. Four categories are used in the U.S.: METAR abbreviations used in the weather and events section. Remarks section will also include began and end times of the weather events. Codes before remarks will be listed as "-RA" for "light rain". Codes listed after remarks may be listed as "RAB15E25" for "Rain began at 15 minutes after the top of the last hour and ended at 25 minutes after

3658-537: Was disestablished on 4 April 1947 and replaced by ICAO, which began operations the same day. In October 1947, ICAO became an agency of the United Nations under its Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). In April 2013, Qatar offered to serve as the new permanent seat of the Organization. Qatar promised to construct a massive new headquarters for ICAO and to cover all moving expenses, stating that Montreal "was too far from Europe and Asia", "had cold winters",

3720-478: Was hard to attend due to the Canadian government's slow issuance of visas, and that the taxes imposed on ICAO by Canada were too high. According to The Globe and Mail , Qatar's invitation was at least partly motivated by the pro-Israel foreign policy of Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper . Approximately a month later, Qatar withdrew its bid after a separate proposal to the ICAO's governing council to move

3782-410: Was introduced internationally on 1 January 1968, and has been modified a number of times since. North American countries continued to use a Surface Aviation Observation (SAO) for current weather conditions until 1 June 1996, when this report was replaced with an approved variant of the METAR agreed upon in a 1989 Geneva agreement. The WMO's publication No. 782 "Aerodrome Reports and Forecasts" contains

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3844-730: Was the International Commission for Air Navigation (ICAN). It held its first convention in 1903 in Berlin , Germany , but no agreements were reached among the eight countries that attended. At the second convention in 1906, also held in Berlin, twenty-seven countries attended. The third convention, held in London in 1912, allocated the first radio callsigns for use by aircraft. ICAN continued to operate until 1945. The Convention on International Civil Aviation , also known as

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