DUSHANBE, Tajikistan, July 24. Two aircraft previously under arrest and owned by Lithuanian company UAB Skyroad Leasing have been officially handed over to Tajikistan's national carrier, Tajik Air, following the resolution of a long-standing financial and legal dispute between the two parties, Parviz Shodmonzoda, Director General of Tajik Air, said during a press conference, Trend reports.
According to Shodmonzoda, both Boeing planes are in flying condition but need some repairs. He called the settlement with Skyroad Leasing the airline’s most important achievement in the past 15 years.
"If this matter hadn’t been resolved, the airline would not have been able to continue flying. This is the first time a major debt dispute with a foreign company has been resolved in the history of Tajikistan. It’s a historic milestone for the country’s civil aviation," Shodmonzoda said.
The settlement agreement, signed on January 8, 2025, and approved by the Moscow Arbitration Court on May 21, 2025, included mutual concessions from both parties. A major part of the deal was the lifting of the arrest on a Boeing 737-300 aircraft that had been impounded since 2019 at Moscow’s Vnukovo International Airport. The plane will now return to Dushanbe.
Shodmonzoda said that Tajik Air’s debt to UAB Skyroad Leasing was $23 million in early 2018. Due to penalties and interest, it grew to $36.6 million by 2024. The dispute has now been fully resolved: Skyroad Leasing dropped all claims and transferred both aircraft to Tajik Air. The planes had not flown since 2013.
He added that Tajik Air is now actively building international partnerships. The airline is in discussions with UAE-based Air Dynamics Solution (ADS) to lease aircraft and set up a maintenance center in Tajikistan.
