Kazakhstan's First Deputy Prime Minister has approved a separate development plan for cargo airlines. This was announced by Saltanat Tompiyeva, chair of the Civil Aviation Committee, at the 8th International Transport and Logistics Forum in Astana. The plan provides for legislative changes under which market access will be considered separately for passenger and cargo airlines. According to Tompiyeva, the previous rules were rather complicated for cargo carriers.
In addition, Kazakhstan will seek fifth freedom traffic rights from foreign aviation authorities for its cargo airlines. These rights allow a carrier to transport cargo between two foreign states on a flight that begins or ends in the carrier's home country. Kazakhstan already grants such rights to foreign carriers.
Tompiyeva acknowledged that the country has historically lacked a strong sector of national cargo airlines, even though the air transport market is fairly liberal. Which laws will be amended, on what timeline, and with which countries Kazakhstan will negotiate fifth freedom rights has not been reported yet.
Our assessment: separate market access rules could lower the entry barrier for new cargo carriers, and fifth freedom rights would widen the commercial options of Kazakh companies abroad. For lessors of freighter aircraft and cargo airlines this is an early signal of possible market expansion. This is flycentralasia's conclusion, not a statement by the Civil Aviation Committee.