Turkey Grants France Airspace Access To Fight IS In Syria

Turkey has granted access to its airspace to France to fight Islamic State (IS) militants.

Turkey will allow the French jets to fly in its airspace on their way to attack IS militants, Turkish Hurriyet News daily reported Thursday.

“France asked us for authorization to use our airspace in the context of the fight against IS in Syria. This authorization was given on condition that the general principles outlined for the coalition countries are followed,” the news daily quoted a Turkish military source as saying.

France has tested new weapon loads, including GBU-12 laser guided bombs, on its fighter aircraft attacking IS militants in Syria.

The French Air Force in recent weeks has also significantly increased striking within Operation Chammal, its air strikes against Daesh terrorist group. On October 14, 2015, a Rafale for the first time fired a BLU-126 bomb fitted with the Air-to-Ground Modular Weapon (AASM) with GPS / laser guidance.

Several countries including Germany and UK have announced support to France in its fight against the militant organization after the recent attacks in Paris.