Samarkand International Airport Named Fastest-Growing Airport in Europe and Central Asia

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Samarkand International Airport has been recognized as the fastest-growing airport in the Europe and Central Asia region, according to Airport Technology, citing official data from Airports Council International (ACI).

ACI, which unites over 500 airports across 55 countries in the region, reported that 1.38 million passengers passed through the airport’s “state-of-the-art” terminal in 2024, marking a 36.6% increase compared to the previous year. This growth rate more than doubles that of the second-ranked airport, Olbia in Italy, which saw an 18.4% increase in passenger traffic.

The development of Samarkand International Airport was made possible through the initiative of Uzbek entrepreneur and investor Bakhtiyor Fazilov, in cooperation with the government of Uzbekistan, as part of the country’s first large-scale public-private aviation investment program (PPP). The new terminal, opened in early 2022, has since demonstrated continuous record passenger growth.

Air Marakanda, the company operating the terminal and providing ground services, participates in the PPP project. CEO Ulugbek Shamsikulov emphasized: “Our growth is the result of forward-looking investments in a 21st-century state-of-the-art terminal at Samarkand Airport, made during a global pandemic. These numbers reflect the accumulated demand for air travel in this historic region and highlight Samarkand’s rapid emergence as a tourism and commercial hub in Central Asia.”

The main driver of passenger growth in 2024 was international traffic, with over 1.31 million foreign travelers passing through the airport. The most popular destinations included Abu Dhabi, Istanbul, Jeddah, Moscow, and Saint Petersburg.

Takeoffs and landings increased by 23%, totaling 11,000 operations. By the end of 2024, the airport expanded its route network to three domestic and 23 international destinations. New routes launched during the year included Xi’an (China), Sharm El-Sheikh (Egypt), Turkestan (Kazakhstan), and Russian cities Tyumen, Nizhny Novgorod, and Irkutsk.

Across Europe and Central Asia, airports as a whole have exceeded pre-pandemic passenger numbers, reaching 2.5 billion travelers. Samarkand Airport demonstrated a five-year growth of 186% since 2019.

ACI Europe CEO Olivier Jankovec noted that despite economic uncertainty and geopolitical challenges, consumers continue to prioritize travel and experiences, which supports the resilience of the aviation industry. He added that 2024 confirmed significant structural changes in the sector post-COVID, with traffic dynamics driven primarily by leisure travel, visiting friends and family, budget airline activity, airline consolidation, network adjustments, and geopolitical factors.