# Nursultan Nazarbayev International Airport (NQZ)

> Astana, KZ · IATA: NQZ · ICAO: UACC · Large Airport · Cargo Hub

## Quick Facts

| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| IATA | `NQZ` |
| ICAO | `UACC` |
| City | Astana |
| Country | KZ |
| Type | Large Airport |
| Elevation | 355 m |
| Cargo | ✅ |
| GPS | 51.02703, 71.46709 |

## Description

Kazakhstan's second-busiest airport after Almaty, Nursultan Nazarbayev International (NQZ/UACC) operates a dedicated cargo terminal with customs formalities handled on site. Its freight profile matches its role as the capital-city airport: belly cargo on scheduled services dominates, and regular widebody freighter operations on Almaty's scale are not confirmed. A roughly USD 1.1 billion investment agreement with UAE-based Terminals Holding provides for the largest expansion in the airport's history — a second runway, a third passenger terminal, a new cargo terminal and an adjoining logistics and industrial zone. This positions Astana along the Middle Corridor, the China–Kazakhstan–Caspian–Caucasus–Türkiye/Europe axis that has gained considerable weight since 2022. For shippers the air-road combination is the practical point: consignments arrive by air at NQZ and are trucked onward across northern Kazakhstan and to Karaganda. Air Astana, headquartered in the country, is the main source of belly capacity, complemented by Turkish and Middle Eastern connections. For heavier or higher-volume shipments, forwarders normally also evaluate Almaty (ALA) as Kazakhstan's actual cargo hub and Karaganda Sary-Arka (KGF) as a freight-oriented alternative.

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*Freight Academy — Airport Profile: [https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/airports/nursultan-nazarbayev-international-airport-nqz](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/airports/nursultan-nazarbayev-international-airport-nqz)*

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*LLM-Summary (JSON): https://www.freight-academy.com/api/v1/airports/nursultan-nazarbayev-international-airport-nqz/llm-summary*