The third meeting of the Central Asia–China (C5+1) civil aviation cooperation working group took place in Tashkent on 3–5 November at the Hyatt Regency hotel. Civil aviation authorities and airlines from six countries took part: Uzbekistan, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.
The main result of the meeting is three packages of bilateral agreements, formalised in signed protocols. Kazakhstan and China agreed to raise the permitted number of flights and added two Chinese cities, Chengdu and Kashgar, to the route network. Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan raised limits on the main Almaty–Tashkent and Astana–Tashkent routes, as well as on other routes between the countries. Uzbekistan and China raised the permitted number of regular passenger flights by 14%, to 114 a week.
All outcomes were announced on a bilateral basis. No joint statement by the six countries was published after the meeting.
The agenda covered implementation of the Air Silk Road agreement, signed by Uzbekistan's Ministry of Transport and the Civil Aviation Administration of China on 24 January 2024, liberalisation of air transport markets, regulatory harmonisation, wider geographic coverage of regional routes, flight safety, green and smart technologies, joint projects and a mechanism for regular high-level meetings.
Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan took part in the meeting. The fourth meeting of the working group will be held in Kyrgyzstan in 2027. China proposed the C5+1 format as an annual event rotating among the six countries: the 2024 meeting was held in China, the 2025 meeting in Kazakhstan and the 2026 meeting in Uzbekistan.
For airlines, airports and tour operators, the meeting means more available capacity in three markets and new cities for Kazakhstan and China. For carriers from the countries that announced no outcomes, the platform remains an opportunity to negotiate frequencies and new routes at the next meeting in Bishkek.
Our assessment: the meeting showed that results go to countries that arrive with ready bilateral proposals on frequencies and new cities. For Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, the next opportunity for such agreements is the 2027 meeting. This is the view of flycentralasia.