By empty (5/16/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)
Turkmenistan\'s national airline has suspended its Tuesday and Thursday flights to Moscow and its weekly flight to Tashkent. Turkmen Air previously flew from Ashgabat to Moscow on a daily basis. No Russian airline serves the Turkmen capital.
Turkmenistan\'s national airline has suspended its Tuesday and Thursday flights to Moscow and its weekly flight to Tashkent. Turkmen Air previously flew from Ashgabat to Moscow on a daily basis. No Russian airline serves the Turkmen capital. The reason given for reducing the number of flights to Moscow was the number of unsold tickets. It should be noted that although available evidence indicates that many people with Russian passports want to leave Turkmenistan, the new requirement that holders of dual Turkmen-Russian citizenship as well as Turkmen citizens obtain exit visas in order to depart has sharply reduced the number of airline customers. The authorities can take a month to process a request for an exit visa and are allowed to refuse a request without explanation,making advance purchase of an air ticket a risky business. (RFE/RL)