An abandoned airport in Cyprus has been frozen in time for half a century. It's filled with rusting airplanes and peeling paint — take a look.

Monica HumphriesJul 16, 2023, 16:54 IST

An abandoned airplane on the tarmac at Nicosia International Airport.MARIO GOLDMAN/AFP/Getty Images

Nicosia International Airport was abandoned in 1974 due to conflict in Cyprus.
It was once the Mediterranean island's main airport, but it's been untouched for almost 50 years.

A decaying Cyprus Airways Trident 2E aircraft sits on the tarmac of Nicosia International Airport on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus.

But that's not where the ruins end. Decay continues inside the airport, which once served as the welcoming point for visitors to Cyprus.

An empty baggage claim fills one wing. In another area, travel posters unfurl from the wall.

Today, the abandoned airport serves as a reminder of Cyprus' tumultuous past.

For a tiny island, Cyprus — located in the Mediterranean to the south of Turkey and west of Lebanon and Syria — has been riddled with conflict.

An arrow points to Cyprus on a map.Screenshot via Google Maps

In the European island's capital, Nicosia International Airport was at the heart of a major conflict between Greek and Turkish-Cypriots in 1974.

The exterior of the abandoned Nicosia International Airport in Cyprus.MARIO GOLDMAN/AFP/Getty Images

The airport, which was originally built in the 1930s as a military airfield, slowly grew to be a hub for travelers in Cyprus, as Atlas Obscura reported.

A passenger departure area at the abandoned Nicosia International Airport.Athanasios Gioumpasis/Getty Images

But in 1974, Greek nationalists staged a military coup against the Cypriot government. In response, Turkey invaded Cyprus from the north, Slate reported.

The former control tower at Nicosia International Airport.Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Nicosia International Airport became a battleground and in 1974, the United Nations established a buffer zone dividing the island, Slate reported.

The departure hall at the abandoned Nicosia International Airport.ROY ISSA/AFP/Getty Images

In the center of that zone was the Nicosia airport. The buffer zone is still visible on a map today.

Nicosia, Cyprus' capital, sits in the UN buffer zone that's been on the island since 1974.Screenshot via Google Maps

With the creation of the demilitarized zone came the "immediate closure and sudden abandonment" of the airport, Atlas Obscura reported.

The former baggage-claim hall at Nicosia International Airport.Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Today, Cyprus is split in two. The north — or the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus as it's recognized by Turkey — is under Turkish-Cypriot rule. And the south — recognized internationally as Cyprus — is under Greek-Cypriot rule.

Cape Greco in Ayia Napa, Cyprus, is on the country's southeastern coast.Getty Images

Today, Cyprus is split in two. The north — or the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus as it's recognized by Turkey — is under Turkish-Cypriot rule. And the south — recognized internationally as Cyprus — is under Greek-Cypriot rule.

And for the last 50 years, the airport has remained abandoned in what is still a demilitarized zone.

The exterior of the abandoned Nicosia International Airport in Cyprus.MARIO GOLDMAN/AFP/Getty Images

For decades, photographers and urban explorers have explored the site.

A dilapidated Cyprus Airways Trident 2E aircraft sits on the tarmac of the abandoned Nicosia International Airport.MARIO GOLDMAN/AFP/Getty Images

Their photos depict an airport that, for close to half a century, has only been touched by nature's elements.

An abandoned room in the Nicosia International Airport in Cyprus.MARIO GOLDMAN/AFP/Getty Images

Baggage carousels have been destroyed by the elements. The airport's halls have peeling paint on the ceilings and vines growing on the floors.

An abandoned hall in the Nicosia International Airport in Cyprus.MARIO GOLDMAN/AFP/Getty Images

In other areas of the airport, dust and dirt cover crumbling chairs.

The passenger departure area at the abandoned Nicosia International Airport.Athanasios Gioumpasis/Getty Images

But in 2022, the public could tour the airport — virtually. A team of researchers with The Cyprus Institute documented and digitized the abandoned airport. The result was a virtual walkthrough of the crumbling site that anyone can explore, as the Cyprus Mail reported.

An airplane sits on the tarmac at Nicosia International Airport.MARIO GOLDMAN/AFP/Getty Images

But in 2022, the public could tour the airport — virtually. A team of researchers with The Cyprus Institute documented and digitized the abandoned airport. The result was a virtual walkthrough of the crumbling site that anyone can explore, as the Cyprus Mail reported.

They, too, can now see inside an airport that has spent close to 50 years slowly decaying.

A peeling advertisement on a wall at the abandoned Nicosia International Airport.Athanasios Gioumpasis/Getty Images

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An abandoned airport in Cyprus has been frozen in time for half a century. It's filled with rusting airplanes and peeling paint &mdash; take a look.

For a tiny island, Cyprus — located in the Mediterranean to the south of Turkey and west of Lebanon and Syria — has been riddled with conflict.

In the European island's capital, Nicosia International Airport was at the heart of a major conflict between Greek and Turkish-Cypriots in 1974.

The airport, which was originally built in the 1930s as a military airfield, slowly grew to be a hub for travelers in Cyprus, as Atlas Obscura reported.

But in 1974, Greek nationalists staged a military coup against the Cypriot government. In response, Turkey invaded Cyprus from the north, Slate reported.

Nicosia International Airport became a battleground and in 1974, the United Nations established a buffer zone dividing the island, Slate reported.

In the center of that zone was the Nicosia airport. The buffer zone is still visible on a map today.

With the creation of the demilitarized zone came the "immediate closure and sudden abandonment" of the airport, Atlas Obscura reported.

Today, Cyprus is split in two. The north — or the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus as it's recognized by Turkey — is under Turkish-Cypriot rule. And the south — recognized internationally as Cyprus — is under Greek-Cypriot rule.

And for the last 50 years, the airport has remained abandoned in what is still a demilitarized zone.

For decades, photographers and urban explorers have explored the site.

Their photos depict an airport that, for close to half a century, has only been touched by nature's elements.

Baggage carousels have been destroyed by the elements. The airport's halls have peeling paint on the ceilings and vines growing on the floors.

In other areas of the airport, dust and dirt cover crumbling chairs.

But in 2022, the public could tour the airport — virtually. A team of researchers with The Cyprus Institute documented and digitized the abandoned airport. The result was a virtual walkthrough of the crumbling site that anyone can explore, as the Cyprus Mail reported.

They, too, can now see inside an airport that has spent close to 50 years slowly decaying.

An abandoned airport in Cyprus has been frozen in time for half a century. It's filled with rusting airplanes and peeling paint — take a look.