BISHKEK (TCA) — On March 10 the Kyrgyz Parliament ratified the agreement with the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to allocate $16.3 million for the purchase of new equipment for the Manas airport in Bishkek.
The Manas International Airport (MIA) should improve its services, Kyrgyz MPs believe. The Second World Nomad Games are to be held this summer in Kyrgyzstan, and many visitors from other countries are expected. The first thing they will see in Kyrgyzstan will be the airport. However, the professional level of the airport staff leaves much to be desired, MPs said. Most of the staff do not speak English and do not help passengers. Private taxi drivers offer services in the arrivals area, which is not adapted for this. MPs advised to better use the experience of other countries, where airports offer high quality services.
The MIA has raised the airport fee from $10 to $15 for each passenger departing from all airports of Kyrgyzstan. Currently, the fee is charged only in two of the five airports — Manas and Osh.
The MIA, located near Bishkek, is one of the largest airports in Central Asia: 18 airlines including four domestic and 12 international operate regular flights from the airport. The Manas International Airport JSC includes five international and six regional airports in Kyrgyzstan. The company serves about 3 million passengers a year.
Priority projects
In 2015, the MIA JSC earned about 1.4 billion soms, but these funds are not enough to maintain its 11 airports around the country, so the company has to fund priority projects. MIA transfers about 25 percent of its profit to the state in dividends. In 2015, it amounted to more than 200 million soms.
This year, priority projects include modernization of the Manas airport and the Osh airport, the second-largest in the country, and improvement of the Tamchi airport in Issyk-Kul. MIA has allocated 10 million soms for the Tamchi airport. After modernization, the airport will be able to receive planes at night due to improved lighting system.
The Russian-Kyrgyz Development Fund will invest in the second phase of reconstruction of the Tamchi airport, which needs to build a modern refueling complex, provide uninterrupted power supply to the airport, expand the airport terminal, and buy lighting equipment and install the Instrument Landing System (ILS).
It is also necessary to modernize the main navigation equipment and reconstruct the Manas airport, including the completion of the Manas-2 airport complex, modernization of heating and ventilation systems, and reconstruction of the east wing of the main terminal.
New Air Code coming into force
A new Air Code of Kyrgyzstan will come into force this month, but the aviation rules have not yet been developed in accordance with the new Code. The Transport Ministry promised that with the adoption of the new Air Code the situation “will get off the ground and fundamental changes in the field of aviation will begin”. However, there is still no concept for the civil aviation development. The document was submitted to the Government several times, but, according to experts, it needs to be improved.
The Air Code aims to improve the legal system governing the country’s civil aviation to bring it in line with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards. Kyrgyzstan has been an ICAO member since 1992. Having ratified the Convention on International Civil Aviation, Kyrgyzstan obliged to comply with international principles and standards in civil aviation.
The Air Code requires developing and implementation of a phased flight safety management system aimed at continuous improvement of flight safety by identifying risk factors and reducing them before they can lead to accidents.
The new Air Code will facilitate the exclusion of Kyrgyz airlines from the EU blacklist. In 2006, the European Commission Committee on Air Traffic Safety concluded that the aviation authorities of Kyrgyzstan did not have sufficient capacity to implement and enforce safety standards in accordance with the obligations under the Chicago Convention. As a result, local airlines and the Civil Aviation Agency were included in the list of airlines that are banned from flights in the EU airspace. However, local experts doubt that Kyrgyz airlines may quit the EU blacklist in the near future.
Prices growing
Prices for air tickets have increased in Kyrgyzstan. The country does not produce its own jet fuel and buys it from Russia for dollars. Due to appreciation of the dollar in recent months, prices for the fuel have grown.
The fuel filling complex also increases the price, and after the VAT payment prices increase even further. This affects the ticket prices.
To improve the situation, the Government has proposed abolishing the VAT on the supply of jet fuel.
Road to Manas airport
The Transport Ministry promised to complete the rehabilitation of the Bishkek-Airport Manas road by September. The ministry started road works late in February. The road should serve five years without repairs, the ministry said. The rehabilitation worth 940 million soms will be carried out on 23 kilometers of the road and its width will be increased to 18 meters and its lighting will be improved.
