Uzbekistan Airways' flights to Europe bypassing Russia and Belarus

According to reports, the airline has been rerouting its flights since January 20, 2025, taking routes through Azerbaijan and Turkey instead.

The company's press service clarified to Kun.uz that the change in routes was not related to the crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines plane.

"This decision follows a recommendation from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, as we also serve European passengers. It is not connected to the crash of the Azerbaijan Airlines aircraft," the statement explained.

In a similar response to Repost.uz, the company’s press service added, "This is simply a precautionary measure and, to some extent, an optimization of flight routes."

As a result of the rerouted flights, the distance to Europe has increased. For example, the Tashkent-Munich route, which previously flew over Russia, covered 4,849 kilometers. Now, it spans 5,156 kilometers.

"Naturally, this extends the flight time by 30 to 40 minutes each way, which leads to additional costs for the airline. However, we have not raised ticket prices because this is a force majeure situation, and passengers should not be held responsible for it," stated the airline’s Chairman of the Board, as quoted by Gazeta.uz.

For context, on December 25, 2024, an Azerbaijan Airlines plane traveling from Baku to Grozny crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan. Thirty-eight people on board were killed, while 29 survived. Initially, Euronews and Reuters reported, citing Azerbaijani government sources, that the crash was caused by a missile from Russia's air defense system. The plane was struck by a missile while Grozny was under attack by Ukrainian drones, and the missile exploded near the plane, damaging its fuselage.

Three days later, Russian President Vladimir Putin called Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to apologize for the "tragic incident" that occurred in Russian airspace. Aliyev stated that Russia should take responsibility for the crash.

Earlier in January, Uzbekistan's Qanot Sharq airline halted flights to Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Nizhny Novgorod in Russia. The airline cited "operational necessity" as the reason for this decision.