Aviation Community Heads to Routes Silk Road

MANCHESTER, England, July 2, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

The route development forum for CIS, Central & Eastern Europe, Middle East and Asia returns to Tbilisi, Georgia

The second Routes Silk Road, the route development forum that connects Asia, the CIS, Central and Eastern Europe and the Middle East will open this weekend in Tbilisi, Georgia. The event will bring together leading airports, airlines, tourism authorities, policy-makers and aviation stakeholders to develop new air service to, from and within the region.

Hosted by United Airports of Georgia (UAG) and supported by the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, Routes Silk Road will take place in the Georgian capital on 5 - 7 July 2015 at the Radisson Blu Iveria Hotel. Up to 250 delegates are expected to attend the event, representing over 45 airports and 35 airlines including AZAL, AirAsia X, Air China, China Southern, Turkish Airlines, Vueling, Aeroflot, Ukraine International Airlines, easyJet, Air Astana, Air Baltic, Wizz Air and Atlasjet.

Kate Aleksidze, CEO of UAG commented: "We are absolutely delighted to host the aviation community from all over the world in Georgia. Routes Silk Road 2014 proved to be a perfect opportunity for UAG together with the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development and the National Tourism Administration (GNTA) to join the forces and promote the country together as a destination, as well its separate airports to expand the air network."

She went on to say: "Hosting Routes Silk Road again in 2015, gives a new opportunity to UAG and to our partners to further expand our network and attract new airlines into the Georgian market. It gives us a unique chance to reinforce the strategic position of Georgian airports in the region and support further growth of tourism and economic development of the country, as well put Georgia as a destination on the map."

"We are delighted to be returning to Tbilisi following the great success of our first ever Routes Silk Road event last year," said Katie Bland, Director, Routes for UBM EMEA continuing: "Last year's event proved that Georgia was an ideal location for us to bring together representatives from the aviation community across the Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, CIS and Middle East regions. The market for air travel in Georgia and the surrounding region is currently among the fastest growing in the world and the size and diverse terrain of the Silk Road area make air travel an attractive transportation option that is expected to increase as personal incomes rise. This year's event aims to further improve the connections between these regions and the discussions held over the next few days will continue to shape the future of air transport in the region."

One of the highlights of the event will be the Routes Silk Road Strategy Summit which will take place on Sunday 5 July and in the morning of Monday 6 July. It will be opened by Giorgi Kvirikashvili Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development & Vice Prime Minister of Georgia with a keynote address. Over 25 high-level industry leaders will participate in discussions covering some of the key issues affecting the industry today, including Kate Aleksidze, CEO of United Airports of Georgia; Alla Peressolova, Head of the Silk Road Programme for the UNWTO; Yevgen Treskunov, Strategic Development & International Relations Committee, Airports Association of Ukraine (AUCA); Leonid Sergeev, CEO of Krasnodar and Sochi Airports (Basel Aero); Christophe Viatte, Chief Commercial Officer for Air Baltic; George Chogovadze, Head of Georgia National Tourism Administration; and Robert Ludera, Network Planning Manager for LOT Polish Airlines.

This will be the second time that United Airports of Georgia will host the event, building on the success of last year's edition including a number of new air routes with key markets that they secured subsequently.  Air Arabia and Aeroflot commenced new routes from Tbilisi International Airport in October 2014 (to Sharjah and Moscow respectively). Furthermore, UAG is currently in the process of active negotiations with two airlines to serve Kutaisi International Airport.

Notes to Editors 

About Routes 

• Routes organises world-renowned airline and airport networking events through its regional and global Route Development Forums. Each year, there is one global event and one regional event in Asia, Africa, Europe, the Americas and CIS respectively. http://www.routesonline.com

• Routes was founded in 1995 as part of the Manchester UK‐based ASM Ltd., a consultancy specialising in the field of route development for airports. http://www.asm-global.com. Routes and ASM are part of the UBM EMEA division of UBM plc.

• UBM EMEA connects people and creates opportunities for companies across five continents to develop new business, meet customers, launch new products, promote their brands and expand their markets. Through premiere brands such as MD&M, CPhI, IFSEC, TFM&A, Cruise Shipping Miami, the Concrete Show, the Routes portfolio of events, Airport Cities and many others, UBM EMEA exhibitions, conferences, awards programs, publications, websites and training and certification programs are an integral part of the marketing plans of companies across more than 20 industry sectors.

Follow us on twitter: @Routesonline, @TheHUBRoutes, @NLPROU, @airlineroute

About UBM plc 

• UBM plc is a global events-led marketing services and communications company. We help businesses do business, bringing the world's buyers and sellers together at events and online, as well as producing and distributing news and specialist content. Our 5,500 staff in more than 30 countries are organised into expert teams which serve commercial and professional communities, helping them to do business and their markets to work effectively and efficiently.
• For more information, go to http://www.ubm.com; follow us on Twitter at @UBM_plc to get the latest UBM corporate news; follow @UBM for news from all UBM's businesses; follow @UBM for a flavour of UBM from selected members of UBM's Twitterati.