Air Samarkand is to launch its latest international scheduled service to the Israeli capital of Tel Aviv starting on 4 May. The new once weekly service will operate every Sunday on the Samarkand-Tel Aviv route with a modern Air Samarkand Airbus A321 aircraft. The 5.5-hour flights will depart from Samarkand in Uzbekistan at 06:00 am, arriving in Tel Aviv five and a half hours later at 09:25 am local time. Return services will depart from Tel Aviv at 11:20 am, arriving back in the historic city of Samarkand at 18:40 pm local time.
The development coincides with recent initiatives to strengthen cooperation between Uzbekistan and Israel. In 2024, Israel supported Uzbekistan’s application to join the World Trade Organization, and in January this year representatives from Uzbekistan and Israel discussed labour migration issues, with the aim of expanding cooperation in the social and economic spheres.
The start of flight operations to Tel Aviv forms the latest part of Air Samarkand’s strategy to expand its international route network. In 2025, the airline plans to increase the frequency of services to key destinations and add new international city destinations. The Uzbekistan carrier also continues to develop its fleet by investing in modern aircraft and improving customer service to strengthen its position in the Central Asian market. In 2024 Air Samarkand began its first scheduled services in March to the Turkish capital of Istanbul and subsequently opened destinations to Abu Dhabi and Al Ain in the UAE, the religious Saudi cities of Jeddah and Medina, the tourism hot-spots of Nha Trang and Phú Quốc in Vietnam, and Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt from both Samarkand and Tashkent.
Etihad unveils new route to Peshawar
Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, is expanding its global network yet further with the launch of flights to Peshawar, Pakistan, starting 29 September 2025. The new route will connect Zayed International Airport, Abu Dhabi (AUH) with Bacha Khan International Airport (PEW) in Peshawar, offering seamless connections to Etihad’s growing list of dots on its route map. Etihad will operate the route using its modern Airbus A320 family aircraft, featuring eight seats in Business Class and 150 in Economy, ensuring passengers enjoy Etihad’s award-winning service onboard. Initially operating five times a week, with daily flights beginning on 22 November 2025. This expansion follows the recent addition of Addis Ababa to Etihad’s network and marks the airline’s sixteenth new destination in 2025. Alongside Peshawar, Etihad has announced new routes to Prague, Warsaw, Algiers, Tunis, and Atlanta, while also increasing frequencies to key European cities, including Paris, Milan, Manchester, Frankfurt, Zurich, and Madrid.
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