Uzbekistan Airways to fly to Europe bypassing Russia after AZAL plane crash

Uzbekistan Airways has changed its flight routes to Europe, excluding flights over Russian territory, company's board chairman Shukhrat Khudaykulov said.

Report informs via Uzbek media that the decision follows European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) report, which identified flights over European Russia as unsafe. New routes will pass through Azerbaijan and Türkiye.

According to the company representative, the route changes extend flights by 30-40 minutes and increase costs, but passenger fares will not be raised due to the force majeure nature of the situation.

Earlier, Uzbekistan established a special commission headed by the Prime Minister to analyze the situation after the crash of the AZAL aircraft flying from Baku to Grozny. The commission includes representatives from the Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Transport, Uzaviation, and other structures.

The AZAL passenger plane operating the Baku-Grozny flight crashed on December 25 near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan. Of the 67 people on board, 38 died and 29 survived.

According to preliminary data, the plane crashed as a result of physical and technical external interference in Russian airspace.