Qanot Sharq Applies to Fly from Tashkent to New York

Private Uzbek airline Qanot Sharq has filed a request with the US Department of Transportation for a foreign air carrier permit to operate regular charter flights from Tashkent (TAS) to New York (JFK) twice a week. This could make it the first private carrier from Uzbekistan to fly directly to the US.

Currently, Uzbekistan Airways is the only Central Asian airline with permission to fly to the United States. Its direct Tashkent–New York route is popular not only with Uzbek passengers but also with travellers from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.

While Uzbekistan Airways runs scheduled flights, Qanot Sharq plans to operate charter services on demand.

Qanot Sharq has also requested approval to fly to the US from Budapest, which it established as a destination last year. The airline currently operates six aircraft, including two Airbus A330-243s capable of long-haul non-stop flights. Using Budapest as an intermediate point would allow greater operational flexibility for transatlantic services.

The application is expected to be approved, as Uzbekistan and the United States have maintained an Open Skies Agreement since 1998, and Uzbekistan holds an FAA Category 1 safety rating, a status Kazakhstan, for instance, does not have, preventing its airlines from flying to the US.

If approved, Qanot Sharq could launch flights to America as early as next year, expanding Uzbekistan’s international aviation presence and offering travellers a new link between Central Asia and the United States.

Kursiv also reports that Uzbekistan has introduced new rules in air navigation. Now, the country’s national airspace will be designated by the code UZ, while unified parameters are applied nationwide.