Air Transport - The Times Of Central Asia

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Regional Civil Aviation Organization Established for the First Time in Central Asia

The Eurasian Civil Aviation Conference (EACAC) has held its first meeting in Almaty, with the participation of the aviation authorities from participating countries. The meeting included participants from Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, who discussed joint initiatives to strengthen cooperation in flight safety and sustainable aviation development. Representatives from Mongolia also participated as observers. Opening the event, Vice Minister of Transport of Kazakhstan, Talgat Lastayev, noted that EACAC will become a platform to share experiences and address issues related to future challenges in civil aviation. During the meeting, a declaration on the establishment of EACAC was signed, and the document was certified by the Chairman of the Civil Aviation Committee, Saltanat Tompieva, from Kazakhstan. EACAC will allow for the consolidated expression of positions within the framework of interactions with such institutions as the ICAO, the European Commission, IATA, and other international organizations. Katalin Radu, Director General of the Aviation Administration of Kazakhstan, stressed that the new organization would ensure unity in the positions of member countries in the international aviation arena and strengthen cooperation with such associations as ACAO, AFCAC, ECAC, and LACAC. Key tasks of EACAC include the coordination of regional efforts in aviation security, creating common standards, developing unmanned aviation, and training personnel. The initiative was first announced in May 2023 during Kazakhstan's first Aviation Dialogue, “Energy Transition for Sustainable Development and Realization of Central Asia's Transit Potential.” In April 2024, the project was presented during the Directors General of Civil Aviation meeting of the European and North Atlantic Bureau of ICAO (EURNAT-DGCA) in Toulouse, France.

Russia Air Transport Transport and Logistics

Russia Floats Idea of Help from Kazakh Airlines

Russia is talking to Kazakhstan and other “friendly countries” about the possibility of foreign airlines flying domestic routes inside Russia, according to Russian state news agency Tass. The report comes as Russia’s civil aviation industry struggles under the impact of Western sanctions that were implemented after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. Russian Transport Minister Roman Starovoit did not mention the sanctions in comments that were reported by Tass this week, but he referred generally to a global shortage of aircraft. "We are negotiating with friendly countries,” Starovoit said to journalists at a forum in Yekaterinburg, Russia. “For example, we are negotiating with Kazakhstan.” The minister, who took office this year, said Kazakhstan had experienced a 35% increase in “aviation mobility” this year. “The fact is that there is currently a shortage of aircraft all over the world,” Sarovoit said, according to Tass. “And we see that against the backdrop of growth in transportation in foreign countries, the shortage of aircraft leads to a deficit of them, and it is difficult for other countries to solve these problems." He was referring to a process called cabotage, under which an aircraft registered in one country is used for transportation from one point to another within another country. It is unusual in the case of commercial aircraft because countries want to boost their domestic airlines and markets, though the rules can be more relaxed for some private or business aircraft. Russian airlines have traditionally relied on Western aircraft and were vulnerable to sanctions aimed at depriving them of spare parts and supplies. Western companies had demanded that Russia return hundreds of leased aircraft because of the war, but Russia refused. The industry is heavily reliant on state support to keep it going. “Russian aviation, disconnected from suppliers and from experience and knowledge transfer networks, will likely survive, but increasingly as a stand-alone operation,” Anastasia Dagaeva wrote in a March blog post for the Kennan Institute, a research center on Eurasia affiliated with the Washington-based Wilson Center. In contrast, civil aviation in Kazakhstan has been experiencing considerable growth and the Central Asian country is a more popular destination for transit flights because of restrictions affecting Russian airspace. Though the Kazakh industry faces its own challenges, including a shortage of staff.

South Korea Air Transport Bilateral Cooperation Civil Aviation international tourism

Uzbekistan and South Korea Increase Flights Between Countries

During talks in Seoul this week, Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Transport and South Korea’s civil aviation authority reached agreements to increase the number of regular flights between Uzbekistan and South Korea from the current 10 to 24 per week for airlines of each country, raising the total weekly number of flights to 48. According to the Uzbek ministry, airlines of both countries will operate up to 12 weekly flights between Tashkent and Seoul and up to four flights from South Korea’s regions to Tashkent. Up to four flights per week will be performed from Uzbekistan’s regions to Seoul, and there will be up to four weekly flights between Uzbekistan's regions and other South Korean cities. An agreement was also reached on the bilateral use of the Open Skies regime at the international airport of Jeju, the second-largest airport in South Korea, and Uzbekistan’s Samarkand airport for airlines of both countries. From the Uzbek side, flights between the two countries will be operated by the national air carrier, Uzbekistan Airways, and new airlines created by Uzbekistan — Qanot Sharq, My Freighter, and Air Samarkand. According to the Uzbek ministry, these agreements will help develop trade and economic relations between the two countries, increase bilateral passenger and cargo turnover, and attract Korean tourists to the historical cities of Uzbekistan. The Times of Central Asia earlier reported that South Korea is one of the most popular destinations for Uzbeks, both for work and studies. The Uzbeks occupy fifth place by size of the foreign diaspora in the country and number more than 69,000. In recent years, the government of Uzbekistan has established regulations for legal and safe labor migration to South Korea. At the start of 2024, the government announced its intention to attract 100,000 Uzbeks to work in South Korea.

Tourism Air Transport Infrastructure Development Airports resort areas

Kazakhstan to Build Airports in Katon-Karagay and Zaysan Resort Areas

Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Transport has chosen sites to construct new airports in the resort areas of Katon-Karagay and Zaysan in the country’s east. Katon-Karagay is Kazakhstan's largest national park, located in the picturesque region of Southern Altai, near the borders with Russia and China. One new airport will be built in the Katon-Karagay National Park near the village of Soldatovo, 38 kilometers from the village of Katon-Karagay. Another airport will be constructed at a former military airfield 25 kilometers from the town of Zaysan. One of the most beautiful lakes in Kazakhstan, Zaysan is a vast freshwater lake with lots of aquatic diversity. It is about 100 kilometers long, 30 kilometers wide, and 8 meters deep. Lake Zaysan is 239 kilometers from Ust-Kamenogorsk, the largest city in eastern Kazakhstan, which is currently home to the closest airport for both resort areas. The new airports will have 2,200-meter-long runways for short-haul planes, providing air service from the capital, Astana, and Almaty. Plans are in place to extend the runways in the future, which will allow the reception of large aircraft such as Airbus A320 and Boeing 737. According to Transport Minister Marat Karabayev, construction of the airports will begin in 2025.

Turkey Air Transport Bilateral Relations Defense International Cooperation

Agreement by Kazakhstan and Turkey on Air Transit

The Government of Kazakhstan has signed an agreement with Turkey on the transit of military equipment and personnel through the airspace of both countries. The resolution, adopted on September 11, establishes a procedure for using air corridors regulated and authorized by the Ministry of Defense, responsible for the transit of military equipment and personnel; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, responsible for issuing annual and one-time diplomatic permits (DCNs); and the Turkish Ministry of National Defense. Each party has committed to submitting a formal request through diplomatic channels by December 1 of a given year to obtain an annual diplomatic authorization number (DCN) which will be valid for transit operations from January 1 to December 31 of the following year. Enabling the transit of official delegations, military equipment and personnel, humanitarian aid, and diplomatic cargo, the decree comes into force from the day of its signing. The draft agreement between the governments of Kazakhstan and Turkey on the transit of military property and personnel through the airspace of both countries was published on the portal “Open NPA” on August 13 and was under discussion until August 27. The move which illustrates the strengthening relationship between the two countries, follows Kazakhstan's president's attendance at Recep Tayyip Erdogan's inauguration as president in Ankara in June 2023, Erdogans visit to Astana in November of the same year, and his return in July 2024, for the SCO Summit.

China Germany Air Transport Bilateral Cooperation Airports International transport

Kazakh-German Consortium to Build Cargo-Passenger Airport in Khorgos–Eastern Gate SEZ

On September 16, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Transport and Kazakh-German consortium SKYHANSA signed a framework agreement on a project to construct a cargo-passenger airport in the special economic zone (SEZ) Khorgos-Eastern Gate on the border between Kazakhstan and China. The document was signed as part of the official visit of Germany’s Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz to Kazakhstan. The Khorgos–Eastern Gate SEZ is located in Kazakh territory, one kilometer from the state border and China’s border city, Khorgos. The SEZ is strategically located on the route of the Western Europe – Western China highway. It is also a central hub on the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR) that connects China and Europe. The SEZ includes a dry port and a multimodal logistics zone. The first stage of construction of a China-Kazakhstan industrial park on the territory of the SEZ began in November 2023. The Kazakh-German project involves the construction of an airport with a passenger terminal capable of handling up to 500 passengers per hour, a cargo terminal capable of handling up to 250,000 tons per year, a fuel storage facility capable of holding 550,000 tons, a technical center for servicing aircraft, and tourism, shopping, and entertainment facilities. Private investments in the project are expected to exceed $500 million, and more than 300 permanent jobs will be created. The administration of Kazakhstan’s Zhetysu region, where the SEZ is located, has now allocated a land plot for the airport's construction, and the investor plans to begin construction works after concluding the Investment Agreement.