FlyArystan has confirmed a memorandum of cooperation with the authorities of Kazakhstan's Zhetisu region. The airline announced it at a press conference in Taldykorgan in early November.
Routes from Taldykorgan are being studied, with Astana among the directions under consideration. No launch has been approved yet; regional reports give 2027 as a preliminary benchmark.
The memorandum is part of FlyArystan's network expansion in recent weeks. Since 26 October the airline has operated Astana–Yining flights three times a week on an A320. In the first half of November it received a new Airbus A320neo, the 29th aircraft in its fleet. We covered both here: https://www.flycentralasia.com/news/en/flyarystan-astana-yining-route-opens-xinjiang-four-routes-monday-wednesday-saturday/ https://www.flycentralasia.com/news/en/kazakh-carrier-29th-jet-delivery-toulouse/
Taldykorgan is among the cities whose airports are returning to the network. Kazakhstan is rebuilding its regional airport network this year: the airports of Arkalyk and Pavlodar reopened on 22 August, and Zaisan, Katon-Karagai and Kenderli are due to be finished by the end of the year. More here: https://www.flycentralasia.com/news/en/kazakhstan-rebuilds-its-regional-airport-network/
The economics of domestic routes remain a question, however. In October, Vietjet Qazaqstan proposed cutting VAT on domestic flights from 16% to at least 10%, saying all of its domestic routes are loss-making: https://www.flycentralasia.com/news/en/vietjet-qazaqstan-proposes-cutting-vat-domestic-flights/
Our assessment: the memorandum is a stage of intent, not of schedules, and it becomes a route once destinations, frequencies and a start date are announced. For Taldykorgan and the region, what matters is that a major carrier has publicly confirmed its interest in the market. For the airport, tour operators and local business, what will count are the actual routes and schedule once they appear. This is the view of flycentralasia.