Bosnia to control airspace in first since independence

Bosnia will take full control of its civilian airspace for the first time since its 1990s war after midnight on Thursday, authorities announced, hailing a "new chapter" for the Balkan country.

Over the past three decades, Bosnia's air traffic has been controlled mostly by neighbouring Croatia and Serbia, who were in charge of that task while the three countries were still part of former Yugoslavia.

In 2014, Bosnia started monitoring flights below 10,000 metres, which accounts for around 20 percent of air traffic.

On Thursday, the Bosnia's Air Navigation Services Agency (BHANSA) will take over traffic at all altitudes after years of building up the expertise and infrastructure.

"We are opening a new chapter in civil airspace. This is the result of continued investment in infrastructure, equipment and human resources," Davorin Primorac, the director of BHANSA, told reporters.

The agency has trained about 70 new controllers for the takeover and is expected to bring in some 35 million additional euros every year in taxes, money that Belgrade and Zagreb have been dividing until now.

Bosnia has struggled to rebuild since the devastating 1992-95 war between its ethnic Serb, Croat and Muslim communities.

A complex peace agreement stopped the bloodshed but left the country hobbled by a unwieldy governing system prone to paralysis.