Red Wings Airlines will expand flights from Ufa

Within the framework of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on June 15, the Prime Minister of the Government of Bashkortostan, Andrey Nazarov, met with the General Director of Red Wings Airlines, Evgeny Solodilin. The parties discussed expanding the geography of flights from Ufa International Airport: Ufa-Minsk, Ufa-Astana, Ufa-Tehran, Ufa-Shanghai, and Ufa-Vladikavkaz.

The Head of the Cabinet noted that Bashkortostan actively cooperates with 112 countries worldwide. Foreign trade turnover with foreign countries in 2022 exceeded $5.1 billion. Under these conditions, cooperation with friendly countries and developing transport links are essential.

“Together with the Red Wings airline, with the support of the Ministry of Transport of Belarus, we opened a regular direct flight between Ufa and Minsk in March this year. To date, 15 flights have already been made, and over 2 thousand passengers have been transported. Since the beginning of the flights, the average load has been 79%. We have a significant and responsible event ahead of us — a decision has been made at the federal level to hold the 10th Anniversary Forum of the Regions of Russia and Belarus in Ufa on June 26–28. Of course, such a large-scale event will significantly expand contacts between the two countries' regions, businesses, and organizations. Under these conditions, developing transport links between Minsk and Ufa, the organization of the second regular flight, is particularly important,” Andrey Nazarov explained.

According to the press service of the republic's government, following last year's results, the Republic of Belarus took 4th place in the foreign trade turnover of the republic. To further strengthen partnerships with this country, a joint project is being implemented - "Bashkir-Belarusian longevity" to organize trips for citizens of the older generation of Bashkortostan to Belarus.

“The task is to expand flights not only domestic but also international. We have an excellent program organized jointly with the Government of Bashkortostan for Belarus. Now we fly with one frequency, but very shortly, we will launch a second one, which is very important for business development. From Bashkortostan, there is an application for Vladikavkaz. We will work in this direction shortly, especially since great tourism potential exists. We are working on the opening of direct flights with Georgia, and we are waiting for the decision of our Ministry of Transport. We will develop the Ufa-Shanghai direction. Another important point is that we are completing a deal to acquire one of the federal tour operators, and very soon, the airline will have such a necessary tool,” shared Evgeny Solodilin.

The network of foreign representative offices of the Republic of Bashkortostan successfully operates as part of the Russian Trade Representative Offices abroad. The geography of their activities includes Belarus, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and China. Thanks to the productive work of trade missions in the republic, joint projects worth almost 9 billion rubles are being implemented.

During the dialogue, Andrey Nazarov emphasized that interaction with friendly countries is significant for Bashkortostan. Among them is the Islamic Republic of Iran, becoming one of Russia's key political and economic allies today. Over the past three years, trade between Russia and Iran has tripled. The foreign exchange between Bashkortostan and Iran also has a positive trend. According to last year’s results, Iran is in 10th place among trading partners.

To strengthen the economic, trade, and cultural ties between Bashkortostan and Iran, it is necessary to consider the possibility of organizing a direct flight between Ufa and Tehran. In addition, in the current geopolitical conditions, such directions as Ufa - Astana and Ufa - Vladikavkaz are necessary for the republic.

“The organization of direct regular flights will not only enable the economy and business to improve logistics but will also contribute to the development of the tourist destination. We are ready to consider strengthening the presence of Red Wings in Bashkortostan, both in terms of basing and further development of cooperation,” Andrey Nazarov said at the end of the meeting.