On August 16, 2021 the time had come. The Uzbek airline Qanot Sharq is taking off again after nine years of slumber.

Under the rather special name Qanot Sharq, the first private Uzbek airline was founded in 1998. At that time an Illyushin Il76 cargo plane from Uzbekistan Airways was used. But the success did not turn out right, so that the doors were closed in 2012 and the AOC was returned.

But seven years later the name Qanot Sharq reappeared. At the MAKS Air Show in Moscow, the founder, Nosir Abdugafforov, signed a letter of intent for three Sukhoi SSJ100s. After that, things calmed down again for this airline and the letter of intent was never converted into an effective order.

But in the middle of the Corona crisis, the name Qanot Sharq reappeared. The American leasing company Air Lease Corporation secured two used Airbus A320-200s at the beginning of the year. These were then transferred to Uzbekistan in April and May 2021. On July 7, 2021, Qanot Sharq received her own AOC and was able to take off again with the two Airbuses on August 16, 2021. The first flight was from Tashkent to the Uzbek city of Samarkand, which is known for its mosques and mausoleums. The airline has unfortunately not responded to our requests for confirmation of the start of operations by the time this report was published.

The two planes are no strangers to Central Europe. The aircraft now registered as UK32030 flew for Air Berlin between 2005 and 2011, while the second aircraft with the registration number UK32031 was used by LTU between 2007 and 2009, before Belair then flew this A320 for almost a year. Most recently, both were on the road with Interjet in Mexico.

In addition to domestic flights, Qanot Sharq plans to soon fly to Almaty, Ankara, Jeddah, Dubai, Istanbul, Medina, Moscow and St. Petersburg. The fleet is to be supplemented by two Airbus A330s this year and will then comprise three A2022s and A320s each from 330.

By the way, Qanot stands for wings in Uzbek, while Sharq means East in Uzbek. In other words, this airline is called Eastern Wings or Wings of the East ...