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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.
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.
Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Transport has agreed with China Southern Airlines to increase the frequency of flights on the Beijing-Tashkent route from four to seven per week, and on the Urumqi (Xinjiang)-Tashkent route from three to four per week. They also agreed to launch three weekly flights on the Guangzhou-Urumqi-Tashkent route in 2025. At the last C5+1 China-Central Asia Civil Aviation Conference, held in Xi'an in June, Uzbekistan and China agreed to increase the number of flights between the two countries and open new air corridors. Four airlines from Uzbekistan were assigned 58 regular flights per week to transport passengers from the international airports of Tashkent and Samarkand to 12 Chinese cities. Currently, the Uzbek airlines Qanot Sharq, Centrum Air, and Air Samarkand are working to meet the certification requirements of the Chinese aviation administration so that they can begin regular flights to China. At the moment, nine Uzbek and Chinese airlines operate 63 regular flights per week to 16 destinations in both countries, including 21 flights for passengers and 42 for cargo.
Daiyrbek Orunbekov, Head of the Information Policy Service of the Kyrgyz Presidential Administration, stated on his Facebook page that Kyrgyzstan has begun production on ultralight small-size two-seat helicopters. Describing the helicopter, he wrote: “It is a two-seater, can hold 70 liters of fuel, and flies 600 kilometers in 3 hours; pricing starts at around 60 thousand dollars." He also added that automobile, helicopter, and other manufacturing plants would soon be opening in the country. The production of helicopters in Kyrgyzstan, assembled from components supplies by Poland, is the country's first foray into the market. The helicopters can be used for various tasks, from pilot training and aerial photography to police patrols, power line control, medical personnel transport, and aerial agricultural work, and according to Orunbekov, interest has already been expressed by UAE companies in the test models. The Times of Central Asia previously reported that the German company "Linding Group" plans to invest some 10 million dollars in assembling aircraft in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
The Sovico Group, a leading investment conglomerate in Vietnam, is to modernize and further develop the infrastructure of Kazakhstan's Turkestan and Kyzylorda airports. As reported by Kazakh Invest, the deal was confirmed in a Memorandum of Cooperation, signed in Astana between Sovico Group Chairman Dr. Nguyen Thanh Hung and Deputy Governors of Turkestan and Kyzylorda regions. The Chairman of Sovico announced plans to increase the frequency of flights from Vietnam to Kazakhstan, as well as the group's potential development of Kazakhstan’s trade and logistics potential, particularly at the Khorgos hub on the Kazakh-Chinese border. The latter follows discussions with Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev back in May, during which Nguyen Thanh Hung announced his company's interest in taking control of several airports and investing in logistics warehouses for the storage of goods produced in Vietnam and ASEAN countries for subsequent sale in Kazakhstan, Central Asian countries, the EAEU, and Europe. The Sovico Group has also announced plans to acquire Qazaq Air for the sum of approximately $4.2 million by the end of September 2024; a move described by President Tokayev in July, as a demonstration of the Vietnamese conglomerate's ambitious plans to develop civil aviation in Kazakhstan and the region. In a country where rail is the main means of transport, the development of regional airports and domestic flights will have a significant impact on the passage of both cargo and people.
The first Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 aircraft, purchased by Kyrgyzstan’s Manas International Airport Open Joint Stock Company for its Asman Airlines, has arrived in Bishkek. The airplane, made by Canadian manufacturer De Havilland Aircraft, is a short-haul plane capable of carrying up to 80 passengers and transporting them over a distance of up to 2,000 kilometers. Manas International Airport, which runs all airports in the country, is purchasing two Bombardier Dash 8 Q-400 aircraft for the local Asman Airlines at its own expense. Another Q-400 aircraft will arrive later. Kyrgyzstan is experiencing growth in passenger traffic on both domestic and international flights. In 2023, the total passenger traffic amounted to 5.609 million passengers, an increase from 3.98 million, or 41%, in 2021. In addition, the regional airports in Karakol, Kazarman, Kerben, Talas, and Naryn have been reconstructed at the expense of Manas International Airport, allowing the launch of new domestic routes. A new international airport in the southern Jalal-Abad region is under consideration.
