Air Samarkand Announces Launch of Scheduled Flights and Appointment of New CEO
SAMARKAND, Uzbekistan, March 18, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Air Samarkand is to commence its scheduled flight programme on Thursday, 21st March, operating on the Samarkand - Istanbul - Samarkand route with its Airbus A321neo aircraft. In the initial phase, return services will operate twice a week, departing on Mondays and Thursdays from Samarkand International Airport (SKD) to Istanbul International Airport (IST), with a scheduled flight time of about 5 hours.
Air Samarkand has also announced the appointment of Zafar Butaev as its new CEO, succeeding Anton Khodiayan, who will continue serving as an advisor to the airline while reverting to his position as Director General of the airport management company Air Marakanda.
Istanbul is one of the most sought-after destinations from Samarkand, connecting the largest city in Turkey with Uzbekistan through centuries-old cultural, business and tourism ties. Istanbul airport also offers extensive onward travel opportunities to cities worldwide, and Air Samarkand plans to add further flight options on the city pairing in the near future.
Departures from Samarkand are scheduled for 8 am, arriving in Istanbul at 11.10 am, with return services departing from Istanbul at 12:30 pm and arriving back in Samarkand at 7:00 pm (all are local times).
The inaugural scheduled service marks a significant milestone for any airline, and Air Samarkand will offer passengers a world-class standard of comfort and service on the direct flights. There is also significant demand for tourism, cultural and business customers on this route and Air Samarkand looks forward to developing close commercial ties in Turkey as it establishes this new service.
Its modern Airbus A321 is widely used by leading airlines globally and has a proven record for safety, reliability and exceptional passenger comfort. Air Samarkand will operate the latest 'neo' variant of the A321, which is equipped with the new generation CFM International LEAP-1A engines that ensure low noise levels during the flight. The aircraft accommodates 221 passengers in a full economy-class cabin.
Air Samarkand will be offering customers an unprecedented baggage allowance of two checked bags weighing up to 23kg each, plus 8kg of carry-on cabin baggage.
Tickets for flights to Istanbul are available for purchase at easybooking.uz, as well as at travel agencies connected to the Easy Booking system, and at biletbank.com. Further sales will soon open on the airline's own airsamarkand.com website, as well as on other popular online ticket platforms and aggregators.
Notes to Editors
Based at Samarkand International Airport, Air Samarkand has been founded to support a major tourism and commercial drive for the historic city of Samarkand. The airline's primary goal is to provide residents of Samarkand and its neighboring regions with the opportunity to travel direct to in-demand city destinations, removing the need for time-consuming intermediate stops elsewhere, while also enabling new overseas visitors to explore Samarkand and surrounding areas.
Air Samarkand has 12.6 million people in its local catchment area and is already operating direct charter flights and now scheduled services to key popular cities in Asia and Europe, removing the need to use time-wasting flight connections in Tashkent and other regional airports.
The airline has a fleet of modern, safe, reliable and fuel-efficient Airbus aircraft, including the A330, A321, and A321neo models.
Zafar Butaev is an Uzbekistani entrepreneur who has spent more than 15 years working in the tourism, hospitality and service sectors, creating two companies that together now employ more than 500 people. Currently he is also CEO of Silk Road Samarkand, the first multi-functional international tourism centre in Asia. Mr Butaev is a business degree graduate of Tashkent State Economic University, and is fluent in four languages.
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