Somon Air: The Tajik Airline Moving to the Boeing 737 MAX and Eyeing the Dreamliner

History and positioning

Somon Air coexists with the smaller Tajik Air, the country's other, state-owned carrier: a modestly sized air market but with demand made solid by migration flows to Russia more than by inbound tourism.

The fleet

The current fleet is made up of Boeing 737-800s and 737-900s, but the airline received its first Boeing 737 MAX at Dushanbe on August 3, part of a commitment with Boeing announced at the end of 2025 to purchase up to ten 737 MAXs. The same agreement also includes an option for up to four Boeing 787 Dreamliners, a major leap in size for an airline of its scale that would signal the intention to open longer-haul links, although these remain only announced and not yet delivered.

Routes and network

The network regularly links Dushanbe with Germany, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, China, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Iran, India, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. During 2025 the airline opened several new routes, including a weekly direct link to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, one to Tbilisi in Georgia, one to Ufa in western Russia and one to Minsk in Belarus, significantly expanding coverage toward the post-Soviet area.

Somon Air mainly serves those traveling between Tajikistan and Russia or the Gulf for work or to visit family; anyone seeking an established long-haul network to Western Europe will have to wait for the eventual arrival of the Boeing 787s, for now only announced. Anyone booking a flight during holiday periods should do so well in advance, because routes to Russia tend to fill up quickly in step with the return flows of the Tajik community living abroad.