Uzbekistan's Air Samarkand targets A320, A330, ATR72 fleet

Uzbekistan's Air Samarkand takes first aircraft, an A330

Air Samarkand (Samarkand) has taken delivery of its first aircraft, an A330-300. FlightRadar24 ADS-B data shows 2-LCCV (msn 1177), an ex-China Airlines jet configured with 277 seats in Economy Class and 36 in Business Class, ferried in to Samarkand from Taipei Taoyuan on November 3. Based on ch-aviation fleets ownership data, the aircraft is owned by Minsheng Financial Leasing special purpose vehicle Bluesky Magial 1001 Leasing Co Ltd.

The nascent Uzbek carrier said in a statement it expects to take delivery of a second aircraft, an A321-200, "in the coming days" to be configured with 169 Economy, 18 Premium Economy, and 12 Business Class seats. By the end the end of the year, it plans to have four additional A330/A320 family jets in its fleet.

An airline spokesman has since told ch-aviation the widebody will become UK 33001 on the Uzbek register once an AOC has been conferred. The A321, msn 5936, will also become UK 32120.

"As for the other aircraft, we are now...

Editorial Comment: Adds more fleet and growth details - 06.11.2023 - 15:29 UTC

Lessor acquires stake in Lithuania’s Heston Airlines

Dublin-based all-narrowbody lessor Genesis Aircraft Services has taken “a minority investment” in Heston Airlines (HN, Vilnius), it revealed in a statement without disclosing the sum invested or the size of the stake.

The deal underpins a working relationship between the two that goes back to February 2021 when Genesis delivered the first aircraft to Heston, A320-200 LY-FJI (msn 2157), enabling the Lithuanian ACMI/charter specialist to obtain its Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) in May of that year. They said at the time that they had “formed an alliance” to get the airline off the ground but were vague about the details.

Since then, Heston Airlines has “exceeded growth expectations, supporting the robust recovery in passenger travel,” Genesis said in the latest statement, dated October 26, confirming the lessor’s “belief in the potential for a strong recovery” after the pandemic.

According to ch-aviation fleets advanced data, Heston Airlines currently operates a fleet of 15 aircraft. Five of its ten A320-200s are under lease from Genesis including the sole aircraft operated by Heston’s...

Uzbekistan's Centrum Air to launch with A320s, B737s

Uzbekistan's Air Samarkand eyes 1H23 launch with A320s