Aviation History
Georgian civil aviation was part of the Soviet Aeroflot system until independence in 1991, after which the sector fragmented into numerous small carriers; Airzena, founded in 1993 and later rebranded Georgian Airways, emerged as the leading carrier and was designated flag carrier in 1999. Georgian aviation has since been repeatedly shaped by regional geopolitics — the 2008 Russo-Georgian War, Russia's 2019–2023 flight ban, a 2021 bankruptcy tied to COVID-19 and the ban, and Ukrainian sanctions imposed on Georgian Airways in 2023 after Moscow flights resumed. Because Georgia's relations with Russia and its aviation-sanctions environment remain unsettled, current operational and legal status should be checked against up-to-date sources.
Georgia regained independence from the USSR; the Soviet Aeroflot Georgian directorate's assets became the fragmented basis of a new national aviation sector.
Airzena was established, initially operating charter flights to the UAE, Italy, China, Egypt, India and Syria alongside scheduled service to Vienna.
Airzena was designated Georgia's flag carrier, consolidating its role as the country's leading airline.
The carrier leased Boeing 737-500s from Hapag-Lloyd, described as the first case of a Georgian airline operating up-to-date Western aircraft.
Airzena rebranded as Georgian Airways, the name it has carried since.
The August 2008 war with Russia disrupted regional airspace and severed direct Russia-Georgia air links for years.
Russia banned all direct flights to and from Georgia following anti-Russian protests in Tbilisi; the ban was lifted by Russia in 2023, a reversal that itself proved contentious.
Georgian Airways filed for bankruptcy at the end of 2021, citing the Russian flight ban and roughly 11 months of Georgia's own COVID-19 international air-traffic suspension.
After Russia's ban was lifted in May 2023 and Georgian Airways resumed Tbilisi-Moscow service, Ukraine imposed sanctions on the airline in July 2023 — a politically sensitive, evolving situation that may have shifted further since.
Georgian Airways (formerly Airzena) · MyWay Airlines · Air Georgia
Wikipedia, Georgian Civil Aviation Administration, airline corporate history, regional news outlets (Jamestown, CAPA, aviation trade press)
Aviation Firsts
Tbilisi's first airport (Varketili area) — Tbilisi (1923): Began operating in 1923, located in today's Varketili-1 district, consisting of an airfield and small wooden terminal, per the Georgian National Encyclopedia. Defunct — superseded by the airport at its current site. · Georgian National Encyclopedia ↗
Tbilisi International Airport (current site) — Tbilisi (1933): Built 1933 at its present location (Kvemo Aleksеevka), helping develop Georgian civil aviation; first terminal building added 1952, second terminal 1968, international status from 1981, new international terminal February 2007. · Georgian National Encyclopedia ↗
Tbilisi's original 1923 airfield was at a different physical site (today's Varketili district) and is now defunct; the airport at its present location has operated continuously since 1933. Batumi (current airport opened 2007) and Kutaisi (current terminal reopened 2012 after renovation) are both clearly younger.
Airzena Georgian Airways (now Georgian Airways) (1993): Founded 1993 by three pilots, initially running charter flights to the UAE, Italy, China, Egypt, India and Syria plus scheduled Vienna service. Became Georgia's flag carrier in 1999; renamed from Airzena to Georgian Airways in August 2004. Still flying today, fully privatized. A possible earlier post-Soviet predecessor (sometimes referenced informally as "Orbi Georgian Airways," as successor to Aeroflot's Georgian directorate) could not be verified with any dated, sourced confirmation, so it is not reported as a competing claim. · A9 ↗ · Georgian Airways ↗
TAV Georgia (Turkey): A subsidiary of Turkish airport operator TAV Airports Holding began operating in Georgia in 2005, per Tbilisi Airport's own official history page, taking over operation of Tbilisi airport (and, from May 2007, Batumi), later building new terminals (2007) that explicitly included ground-handling equipment. TAV Georgia's current services list includes passenger/baggage handling, ramp services, cargo and mail, and load control. No explicit "first foreign ground handler" statement was found — TAV is primarily an airport operator/concessionaire rather than a standalone multinational GH brand like Swissport or dnata. Explicitly checked Swissport, dnata, Menzies Aviation, Çelebi and Havaş, with no Georgia mentions found for any of them; local handlers found (AFS Ground Handling, tbsgroundhandling.ge) appear to be domestic, not foreign-owned. (best-documented candidate found — not source-confirmed as literally first.) · Tbilisi Airport (TAV) ↗