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Syrian aviation authorities moved Wednesday to counter Israeli media claims about a newly installed radar system at Damascus International Airport, emphasizing the equipment serves exclusively civilian air traffic control functions.
The General Directorate of Civil Aviation and Air Transport issued a written statement clarifying that the radar system recently commissioned at Damascus International Airport operates purely for air navigation and civil air traffic management purposes. The directorate maintains full and direct authority over the system, which operates under national laws and approved international regulations as part of the air safety framework.
The radar installation represents part of broader efforts to modernize Syria's civil aviation infrastructure, improve security levels and increase airspace management efficiency, according to the directorate's statement. Officials explicitly denied any military or non-civilian applications for the system.
Türkiye's embassy in Damascus announced earlier this week that ASELSAN's HTRS-100 Air Traffic Control Radar System is being installed at the airport to enhance flight safety. Turkish Ambassador to Syria Nuh Yilmaz shared updates on social media about the installation progress at Syria's primary aviation hub.
The HTRS-100 employs a dual surveillance radar configuration, combining Primary Surveillance Radar panels operating in S-Band with Secondary Surveillance Radar components. The system provides precise detection and tracking of airborne targets through advanced clutter suppression and target tracking algorithms.
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Syria's aviation directorate emphasized its commitment to the International Civil Aviation Chicago Convention and standards published by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The statement rejected any involvement of the civil aviation sector in political or military contexts.
The clarification follows claims by Israeli television channel E24 that the advanced radar at Damascus International Airport poses "a major challenge to Israeli warplanes."
The HTRS-100 features distributed active hot standby architecture, found in only a handful of systems worldwide, which allows continuous operation even if individual components fail. The system's range can be configured to either 80 or 100 nautical miles, approximately 185 kilometers.
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