President of Abkhazia makes optimistic but unlikely promises on Sukhum airport
Badr Gunba on future of Sukhum airport
Abkhazian President Badr Gunba has claimed that Sukhum Airport will handle 1 million passengers in 2025. However, based on the current number of flights and ticket prices, that forecast appears highly unrealistic.
Gunba presented this projection during the Caucasus Investment Forum in Mineralnye Vody.
In a separate conversation with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, Gunba acknowledged that Sukhum Airport is currently operating at a minimal capacity — with only two flights a week and connections to just two Russian cities: Moscow and Nizhny Novgorod.
It is worth recalling that Sukhum Airport had been out of service for over 30 years following the outbreak of the Georgian-Abkhaz war in 1992–93 and only resumed operations on 1 May 2025.
Due to the airport’s lack of an international license, flights are limited to routes within Russia. These are operated by Russian domestic airlines, which are not subject to sanctions for violating international aviation regulations.
The Abkhaz authorities have promised that starting mid-June, the flight network will expand to include several more Russian cities and that the airport will operate daily. However, even if this materializes, reaching the target of 1 million passengers remains highly unlikely.
The main issue is that most flights arriving in Sukhum require a layover in one of Russia’s cities, which increases both travel time and ticket prices.
The cheapest flight from Moscow to Sukhum currently costs 25,000 roubles (around $314), at least twice as much as a flight from Moscow to Sochi. As a result, most Abkhaz residents still prefer to travel to Moscow via Sochi airport, which is only about a three-hour drive from Sukhum.
That said, the Abkhaz government has promised to lower ticket prices. Last week, the republic’s parliament amended the law “On Value Added Tax” to introduce a zero VAT rate on services related to international air travel through Sukhum Airport.
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