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.
www.airsamarkand.com
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SOURCE Air Samarkand, Uzbekistan