The second Routes CIS event will open in just 4 days time in Ekaterinburg, Russia hosted by Ekaterinburg Koltsovo Airport at the angelo Airport Hotel Ekaterinburg which is connected to the Airport.

The number of delegates registered to attend the event has already surpassed the expected number of 200 and for several of the companies registered so far, Routes CIS 2012 will be the first time they have attended any of the Routes events. Airlines such as Yakutia Airlines, VIM Airlines and Tartastan Airlines will make their inaugural Routes appearance in Ekaterinburg alongside Kazan Airport, International Airport Barnaul, Belgorod International Airport and Koeln Tourismus Gmbh.

Airlines currently registered to attend the event contain an, unsurprisingly, strong participation from the CIS based airlines. Attendees so far include S7 Airlines, Rossiya, Aerosvit, Air Astana, VIM, Yakutia, Tartastan, and Ural Airlines with more expected to confirm soon.

Interest from the Middle East carriers comes in the shape Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways along with FlyDubai and Pegasus which have strong respective networks into the CIS region. Air Baltic will also be present and there will be a senior representation from Czech Airlines which operates 11 routes in Russia and the Ukraine combined from Prague.

Other out of region attendees include European leading Low Cost Carrier Ryanair and SkyTeam member China Southern who also recently confirmed their attendance.

Nigel Mayes, Vice President & Commercial for UBM Aviation Routes commented: "The unique location of Ekaterinburg makes it the ideal place for delegates from all over the CIS region to meet and we are delighted that this second event attracts the key decision makers from the region and plays an important role in shaping future networks within the CIS," Mayes continued: "We expect the event to grow and develop in line with the expected market growth in the CIS region."

"It's a great honor to welcome representatives of the world's airports and airlines here in Ekaterinburg," says Koltsovo Airport CEO Evgeny Chudnovsky. "We hope that Koltsovo Airport will become a centre for cooperation between airlines and airports, bringing their interests together, and that the result of this Routes CIS event will be new air services to CIS cities, not only for Ekaterinburg, Nizhny Novgorod and Samara but also other regional airports in Russia. We wish interesting meetings and productive work to all delegates, and new and valuable information to guests and journalists."

Founded in 1723 on the Eastern side of the Ural Mountain range Ekaterinburg is the fourth largest city in Russia with a population of 1.4 million. It is a powerful industrial and research centre as well as a major business centre whose banking and financial institutions occupy a leading place in Russia's national economy. Ekaterinburg is located in the central Eastern part of Russia and due to its unique geographical location on the border of Europe and Asia it is the ideal location for airports, airlines, tourism authorities and other industry stakeholders to develop relationships between the East and the West.

This year's Routes CIS event will open with the Strategy Forum on the afternoon of Sunday June 24th. Giving a valuable insight into aviation across the region, the programme will bring together high profile speakers in a combination of presentations and panel discussions addressing key route development issues affecting commercial aviation across the entire CIS region.

Panel sessions include; Accessing the CIS Market: bilateral and Barriers to Entry, Attracting the Outbound CIS Leisure Market and Investment, Infrastructure & Improvements - Airport Development in the CIS. A number of industry leaders will be involved in the Strategy Forum including the likes of Mr Alexander Schroll, Director Traffic Development for Munich Airport; Mr Emre Pekese, Director of Sales for Pegasus Airlines; Ms Marina Bukalova, Vice President, TCH Russia, Mr Sergey Likharev, General Director of Basel Aero Airport; Mr Oleg Shpagin of Krasnoyarsk Yemelyanovo Airport and Mr Sergey Emdin, CEO of Saint Petersburg International Pulkovo Airport

Contributed by UBM Aviation