Kazakhstan and China agree to increase flights by another 18% and add new destinations

The agreement was signed by Saltanat Tompieva, Chairwoman of the Civil Aviation Committee of Kazakhstan, and Bai Wenli, Deputy Director General of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) :: Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan

Aviation authorities from Kazakhstan and China have agreed to further expand bilateral air traffic rights, increasing the regular passenger flight quota from 152 to 180 weekly frequencies—an 18% capacity bump over previous limits.

The agreement, finalized during the China–Central Asia Civil Aviation Working Group Conference (C5+1) in Tashkent, follows a prior quota increase from 124 to 152 weekly flights secured in Beijing less than six months ago. The expanded framework opens access to two additional Chinese destinations—Chengdu and Kashgar—bringing the total number of PRC destinations accessible for flights from Kazakhstan to 13 cities.

The move comes amid rapid market growth between the two nations. According to data from OAG, scheduled seat capacity between Kazakhstan and China has expanded nearly sixfold over the past three years. Carriers offered approximately 191,000 seats in summer 2023, compared to 1.09 million seats across both directions in the summer 2026 schedule.

This momentum is projected to continue into the winter 2026/2027 season, with total market capacity expected to top 862,500 seats—a 52% year-over-year increase—supported by an expansion of non-stop city pairs from 18 to 22.

Ahead of the Tashkent talks, flagship carrier Air Astana and China Southern Airlines announced a joint venture agreement, marking a significant escalation in regional carrier partnerships. Moving beyond traditional code-sharing, the bilateral deal establishes joint schedule coordination, integrated sales efforts, and network optimization between Kazakhstan and China.