Tatarstan Airlines (Tatar: Татарстан Һава Юллары; Russian: ОАО «Авиакомпания „Татарстан“», romanized«Aviakompaniya „Tatarstan“») was the regional airline of the Republic of Tatarstan, part of the Russian Federation. It was based at Kazan Airport in Kazan, Tatarstan, Russia[1][2] and operated from 1993 until 2013.

JSC Tatarstan Airlines
ОАО «Авиакомпания „Татарстан“» (Russian)
IATA ICAO Callsign
U9 TAK TATARSTAN
Founded1993
Commenced operations1999
Ceased operations1 January 2014
HubsKazan International Airport
Focus citiesBegishevo Airport
Fleet size9
Destinations13
HeadquartersKazan Airport
Kazan, Russia
Key people
  • Aksan Rimovich Giniyatullin (CEO)
Websitewww.tatarstan.aero

History edit

 
An Ilyushin Il-86 of Tatarstan Airlines landing at Antalya Airport in 2007
 
A Tatarstan Airlines Yakovlev Yak-42 approaches Domodedovo International Airport in 2005.

Tatarstan Airlines was founded in 1993[3] and started flights in 1999. It operated scheduled flights to destinations in Russia and abroad including seasonal charter flights to holiday destinations.

In 2012, Tatarstan Airlines announced that it would work with Turkish Airlines to make Kazan airport a federal hub.[4]

In November 2013, the crash of Tatarstan Airlines Flight 363 claimed the lives of all 50 passengers and crew. Russia's air transport regulator Rosaviatsiya recommended that Tatarstan Airlines' operating license be withdrawn after air incident investigators concluded that the crash was due to overworked and inadequately trained crew.[5] The airline's operating license was revoked on 31 December 2013 and its aircraft were transferred to Ak Bars Aero.[6]

Destinations edit

Tatarstan Airlines operated scheduled passenger services to cities in Russia including Moscow, Saint Petersburg and Makhachkala as well as international destinations Baku, Dushanbe, Yerevan, Tashkent, Khujand, Istanbul, Prague and Tel Aviv. Tatarstan Airlines operated charter services in Russia, Bulgaria, Egypt, Greece and Turkey. In 2010–2011, Tatarstan Airlines flew 40 routes. In 2009 it carried 577,000 passengers, which grew to 603,000 in 2010 and 824,000 in 2011.[7]

Codeshare agreements edit

Tatarstan Airlines had codeshare agreements with the following airlines (as of November 2013):[citation needed]

Fleet edit

 
An Airbus A319 of Tatarstan Airlines at Corfu International Airport in 2012
Tatarstan Airlines Fleet[8]
Aircraft In Fleet Orders Passengers Notes
B Y Total
Airbus A319-100 4 1[9] 0 156 156[10] [9] Charter routes only[10]
Boeing 737-400 1 0 12/0 138/150 150
Bombardier CRJ-200 0 2[9]
Tupolev Tu-154M 2 0 0 164 164
Yakovlev Yak-42 2 0 16/0 84/120 100/120
Total 9 3

Accidents and incidents edit

 
This Boeing 737-500, registered VQ-BBN, was destroyed on 17 November 2013 in the crash of Flight 363, seen here approaching Kazan Airport in 2009.

On 17 November 2013, Boeing 737-500 (VQ-BBN) arriving from Moscow crashed on landing at Kazan International Airport. All 44 passengers and 6 crew members were killed. The crash resulted in the temporary closure of the airport.

References edit

  1. ^ "Головной офис." Tatarstan Airlines. Retrieved on 28 October 2010. "420144, Россия, Татарстан, г. Казань, Аэропорт"
  2. ^ "World Airline Directory." Flight International. 23–29 March 1994. 122. "Head office: Kazan Airport, Tatarstan 420017, Russia"
  3. ^ (in Russian) Federal State Unitary Enterprise "State Air Traffic Management Corporation", Airline Reference, Vol. 1, Russian Federation, 20 February 2007, p. 423
  4. ^ Aircompany “Tatarstan” | Tatarstan Airlines and Turkish Airlines are transforming Kazan airport into a new federal hub. Tatarstan.aero (15 March 2011).
  5. ^ Steve, Gutterman (20 December 2013). "Russian regulator to ground regional airline following deadly crash". Reuters.com. Thomson Reuters. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
  6. ^ "Авиакомпания "Татарстан" лишилась сертификата эксплуатанта". Kommersant. 31 December 2013.
  7. ^ Aircompany “Tatarstan” | Company. Tatarstan.aero (22 December 2011).
  8. ^ Авиакомпания «Татарстан» | Парк самолетов. Tatarstan.aero.
  9. ^ a b c (in Russian) BusinessOnline. Aviaport.ru.
  10. ^ a b (in Russian) Aviaport digest. Aviaport.ru.

External links edit