Silk

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Lore & Background

The company was founded in 2001 and started commercial flights on 6 October 2001. In early 2015, Silk Way West Airlines negotiated a contract for another three Boeing 747-8 freighters, the 747-8F. In May 2015, the airline was announced as the launch customer for the Antonov An-178 after placing an order for 10 aircraft. In 2017, the company signed purchase of 10 more Boeing 737 MAX aircraft with a total cost of $1B. However, the Boeing 737 MAX passenger airliner was grounded worldwide between March 2019 and December 2020 – longer in many jurisdictions – after 346 people died in two crashes, Lion Air Flight 610 on 29 October 2018, and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 on 10 March 2019. The United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) resisted grounding the aircraft until 13 March 2019, when it received evidence of accident similarities. By then, 51 other regulators had already grounded the plane, and by 18 March 2019, all 387 aircraft in service were grounded. Consequently, these aircraft were never delivered to Silk Way Airlines and are not included in its current fleet.

In Their Own Story

In July 2017, an investigation by the leading Bulgarian daily newspaper Trud, which has a reputation for investigative crime reporting, revealed that Silk Way Airlines exploited a loophole in international aviation and transport regulations to offer flights to arms manufacturers and private companies – with much of the cargo heading for conflict zones including Central Asia and Africa. Since the transportation of military cargo by civil aircraft is heavily regulated by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Silk Way Airlines applied for diplomatic exemption of the aircraft and cargo (e.g., diplomatic charter flights) through local agencies to transport heavy weapons, ammunition, and white phosphorus munitions in support of United States military operations to several challenging war zones. The published documents included correspondence between the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of Azerbaijan to Bulgaria, with attached documents for weapons deals and diplomatic clearance for overflight and/or landing in Bulgaria and many other countries such as the United States, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Turkey. The documents disclosed that American weapons manufacturers had shipped over $1 billion of weapons through Silk Way Airlines, and corporate subcontractors included Purple Shovel LLC based in Sterling, Virginia, and the U.S. Department of Defense subcontracting vehicle Culmen International LLC based in Alexandria, Virginia.

Reader's Guide

Destinations: In September 2018, Silk Way Airlines announced its expansion of routes to Northern China, with flights to Tianjin carried out twice a week. Fleet: As of August 2025, Silk Way Airlines operates the following aircraft: 5 Ilyushin Il-76. The additional fleet of Boeing and Airbus cargo aircraft is operated by sister company Silk Way West Airlines. Incidents and accidents: On 7 November 2002, at 11:30 local time, Silk Way Airlines Flight 4132, which was operated using an Antonov An-12 (registration 4K-AZ21) overshot the runway upon landing at N'Djamena International Airport in Chad. The aircraft was destroyed, but the six crew members on board survived. On 6 July 2011, at 00:10 local time, Silk Way Airlines Flight 995, an Ilyushin Il-76 (registration 4K-AZ55), crashed into a mountain 25 km (16 mi) short of Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan, killing all of the crew of nine people on board the cargo flight from Baku, which was operating on behalf of NATO. On 18 May 2016, a Silk Way Airlines Antonov An-12 crashed during takeoff at Dwyer Airport in southern Afghanistan, killing seven of the nine crew members on board the cargo flight to Mary International Airport.

Did You Know?

• Silk Way Airlines was founded in 2001 and started commercial flights on 6 October 2001.
• In May 2015, the airline was announced as the launch customer for the Antonov An-178 after placing an order for 10 aircraft.
• In 2017, the company signed purchase of 10 more Boeing 737 MAX aircraft with a total cost of $1B, but these aircraft are not included in Silk Way Airlines' current fleet due to the worldwide grounding after two crashes.
• On 6 July 2011, Silk Way Airlines Flight 995, an Ilyushin Il-76, crashed into a mountain 25 km short of Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan, killing all nine crew members.
• Silk Way Airlines subsidiary Silk Way West Airlines supports German NGO 'Wings of Help' by flying aid supplies into northern Iraq, aiding over 23,000 children.