Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/. The two-seater "charter" connection in the form of ultralight aircraft SHARK with serial number 103, which set off from Václav Havel Airport Prague on June 26, landed at the newly-launched international airport of Ulaanbaatar on July 3, 2021, after covering a distance of 7,299 kilometers.

SHARK, having a symbol of the Mongolian Four Powers – mythical creatures of the Heaven and Earth Guardians depicted on the wings by the artist L. Amarsanaa, has become the first to arrive in Mongolia.  Under the protection of these Four Powers the airplane arrived via its own unique route and seal the path of Heaven.

SHARK with registration OK-AUR71 is built on the 71-year history of Czech-Mongolian relations, during which the Czechs built the 1st hospital in Ulaanbaatar, helped build the mining, leather and footwear industries, in recent years also engaged in environmental protection, mainly thanks to the project Prague Zoo "Return of Wild Horses". After deliveries of Czech buses, motorcycles, cars, locomotives and other equipment to Mongolia, it is time for cooperation in the aviation industry, which is one of the world's best in the Czech Republic, especially in the field of ultralight flying.

The commander of the aircraft Denis Gibadulin and at the same time the managing director of SHARK.AERO CZ together with the German pilot living in Mongolia for a long time Gerhard Wackenhut will present the Czech model of private flying in 20 times larger Mongolia. As in the 1990s, Mongolia was largely inspired by the Czech path to democracy and a market economy and became a priority country for Czech development aid, today it has the opportunity to use the Czech model of a country with a vibrant aviation industry and services with more than 3,000 private ultralight aircraft.

Despite their great geographical distance, the Czech Republic and Mongolia are very close partners. Diplomatic relations were established between the two countries as early as 1950. In the 1960s, Czech geologists worked in Mongolia and contributed to the discovery of the largest copper and molybdenum deposits. In the 1970s, the then Czechoslovakia financed and implemented the construction of the 1st hospital in Ulaanbaatar, and was at the birth of the Mongolian leather and footwear industry. In Mongolia, Czech buses, motorcycles, cars and trucks, turbines and locomotives, production lines in the food industry, equipment for the armed forces have proved their qualities, but of course Czech beer, Czech glass and porcelain have also gained popularity. 

Tens of thousands of Mongolian students studied at Czech universities. In the 1990s, Mongolia was largely inspired by the Czech path to democracy and a market economy and became a priority country for Czech development aid. The importance of trade relations between the two countries and cooperation in the field of environmental protection is growing, especially thanks to the Prague Zoo project "Return of Wild Horses", but also thanks to long-term activities of Czech non-profit organizations People in Need and Charity. Today, the Czech Republic is the second home of the largest Mongolian community in Europe, numbering more than ten thousand citizens.

Source: Embassy of the Czech Republic in Ulaanbaatar