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Rendering of Shohin Airlines aircraft.
FARNBOROUGH—Tajikistan startup Shohin Airlines has disclosed an order for four Airbus A320neo-family aircraft.
The agreement covers two A320neos and two A321neos. The deal was previously recorded in the manufacturer’s June orderbook as an unidentified customer.
Shohin plans to configure the A320neos with 176 seats and the A321neos with 196 seats, both in two-class layouts. The airline said the aircraft would form the backbone of its fleet and support services from Tajikistan to regional and global destinations.
“The signing of our first contract with Airbus marks a milestone not only for Shohin Airlines, but also for the entire civil aviation sector of Tajikistan,” CEO Zafar Ahmadzoda said in a statement this week.
Shohin was registered in June 2025 and is based in the Tajik capital, Dushanbe. The airline is still preparing to begin commercial operations and has not announced an initial route network or launch date.
The carrier’s planned entry comes as capacity from Tajikistan continues to expand. OAG Schedules Analyser data show airlines are offering about 1.36 million departing seats during the summer 2026 season, up 5.6% from 1.29 million a year earlier. Scheduled departures have increased by 6.2% to more than 7,200.
Dushanbe accounts for approximately 915,000 departing seats, or 67% of the country’s capacity. Khujand is the second-largest departure point with about 318,000 seats, followed by Kulob with 106,000 and Bokhtar with almost 23,000.
The market is highly concentrated between Russian carrier Ural Airlines and Tajikistan-based Somon Air. Ural is the largest operator during summer 2026 with about 637,000 departing seats and a 46.8% share, while Somon has approximately 384,000 seats and 28.2%.
Other operators from and to Tajikistan include Air Astana, China Southern Airlines, flydubai, Nordwind Airlines, S7 Airlines, Turkish Airlines, UTair Aviation and Uzbekistan Airways.
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