Uzbekistan's Ministry of Transport advises airlines to consider the unstable situation in border regions when planning flights.

At the end of January, Uzbekistan Airways announced that, in order to ensure safety, all flights to Europe will now operate on a southern route through Azerbaijan and Turkey, avoiding passage through Russian territory.

In response to an editorial inquiry from Anhor.uz, the Ministry of Transport of Uzbekistan stated that, to date, the aviation authorities of the Republic of Uzbekistan are taking all necessary measures to ensure the safety of international air navigation in accordance with the Convention on International Civil Aviation (ICAO).

“In particular, there is close interaction and data exchange between the aviation authorities of the regions to prevent and reduce the level of flight security threats. All airlines in Uzbekistan are regularly provided with relevant recommendations when operating flights in airspace bordering areas of unstable situations,” the statement said.

The crash of an Embraer aircraft belonging to AZAL, which was on a flight from Baku to Grozny, occurred on December 25 near Aktau. There were 67 people on board, including 42 citizens of Azerbaijan, 16 citizens of Russia, 6 citizens of Kazakhstan, and 3 citizens of Kyrgyzstan. The tragedy claimed the lives of 38 individuals.

Russian investigators confirmed that flight 8243 of Azerbaijan Airlines was shot down by a missile from the Pantsir-S1 air defense system.