Hawker Siddeley Trident 2E aircraft, registered 5B-DAB, was damaged on the tarmac of Nicosia Airport during Turkish air strikes on July 22, 1974, the day of the ceasefire. It has never taken off since and has remained on the same concrete for fifty-two years, riddled with bullet holes. The aircraft, about 35 meters long—equivalent to two articulated buses placed end to end—was delivered to Cyprus Airways in May 1970. It had only four years of commercial service before the conflict. The Trident did not achieve the same success as its American rival, the Boeing 727, and only 117 units were ever built, making this wreck one of the few remaining witnesses to a British aircraft that has become rare. The damage to the 5B-DAB occurred during the air strikes on July 22, 1974, in Nicosia, and the aircraft has remained grounded ever since. Nicosia Airport became a UN buffer zone after the ceasefire, preventing any reopening without agreement from both sides. The wreck remains the property of Cyprus Airways and is guarded by the UNFICYP, accessible only with special authorization for 52 years. On July 20, 1974, a coup supported by Greece erupted in Cyprus, prompting Turkey to intervene. Nicosia Airport, then the island's main international gateway, became a battleground between Cypriot and Turkish forces. That morning, the Trident 1E 5B-DAE arrived from London with only six passengers, its captain having vainly requested the cancellation of the flight. Less than an hour later, bombing destroyed the aircraft completely. Some sources say the damage to the 5B-DAB occurred on July 20, others on July 22, the day of the ceasefire, which is also noted by the Aviation Safety Network. At the time, the company had four Tridents. Two of them, 5B-DAC and 5B-DAD, suffered only minor damage but remained stranded. The 5B-DAB, however, was too damaged to be repaired and was abandoned near the company's maintenance hangar. Engineers from British Airways came to recover the salvageable aircraft in 1977 to transport them to London. The engines of the 5B-DAB were used to get its two sisters back into operation. On July 23, 1974, the commander of the UN force in Cyprus ordered his troops to take control of the airport and declared it a protected area of the United Nations. Both sides then had to withdraw at least 500 meters from the perimeter. When the ceasefire lines were established in August, the area was integrated into the buffer zone separating the north and south of the island. Since then, the airport has come under the UNFICYP. It houses its headquarters, active UN helicopters, and recreational facilities for the staff. Neither side can reopen the platform without the agreement of the other, and civil traffic has shifted to Larnaca, which opened in 1975. Attempts to negotiate reopening over the decades have never succeeded. In February 2026, a citizen-led proposal for a bicommunal museum on the site made headlines, but the UNFICYP spokesperson, Aleem Siddique, called it speculation. No formal proposals had been submitted to the UN, and the status of the airport remained unchanged.