Summary
- Air Astana celebrates a successful 12 months of expansion, with an increased route network and a growing fleet of 49 aircraft.
- The airline invests heavily in training and maintenance facilities to support its fleet expansion and maintain high-quality service.
- Air Astana has commissioned a brand new Flight Training Centre and accomplished its first six-year C-Check, showcasing its commitment to long-term growth and customer satisfaction.
The Air Astana Group, a key airline group within the Central Asian Republic of Kazakhstan, has closed out a successful 2023 and is now on the brink of proceed that success as 2024 opens for business. Last week, the airline reflected on its performance in 2023 and detailed a number of the key strategies which have led it to be the leading carrier within the region.
A 12 months of serious progress for Air Astana
Air Astana is in the course of a fleet expansion that can proceed over the following five years. To support that expansion, it has invested heavily in pilot and cabin crew training in addition to maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facilities and personnel. Those investments and methods have aided the airline in expanding its route network during 2023, adding or launching services to destinations in China, India, Central and Southeast Asia, Caucasus, the Mediterranean, the Middle East and the UK.
Photo: Air Astana
Air Astana is now operating 50 routes to 34 destinations and carried 4.4 million passengers from September 30, 2022, to September 30, 2023. Last 12 months also saw Air Astana pass the Twentieth-anniversary mark for flights from Kazakhstan to Bangkok, Frankfurt, Istanbul and Seoul, with services to Dubai and Beijing stretching back to the airline’s earliest days.
The combined fleets of Air Astana and low-cost subsidiary FlyArystan increased in the course of the 12 months to 49 aircraft, ranging across various types from Airbus, Boeing, and Embraer. The airline said it plans to induct more aircraft over the following five years and consolidate flying to the Airbus A320neo/A321neo/A321LR and Boeing 787 aircraft.
Supporting the continued growth
It’s one thing to have a healthy order book with Airbus and Boeing, and receiving an everyday stream of latest aircraft is doing wonders for Air Astana’s emission reduction programs and pathway to net-zero aviation by 2050, not to say the unparalleled levels of comfort for its passengers. At the identical time, nevertheless, these recent aircraft need a stream of latest pilots, cabin crews and maintenance technicians to succeed. To that end, Air Astana is working hard on programs to deliver the brand new people and facilities required to take care of its enviable and well-earned popularity for excellent service.
Photo: FlyArystan
In a time of worldwide pilot shortages, Air Astana has taken the long-term view, and in September, it officially commissioned a brand new Flight Training Centre at Astana International Airport. The brand new state-of-the-art flight training facility is provided with the newest generation flight simulator from L3Harris and is the primary in Central Asia to be certified by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
Not only will the brand new facility support Air Astana’s needs, however the plan is to develop it right into a state-of-the-art resource for airlines across the Central Asian region. The group also has a long-established program for ab initio pilot training, which has graduated 270 cadets since opening in 2008, a lot of whom have already progressed to captain roles on the airline. The brand new facility also features a Real Fire Fighting Trainer, which can enable realistic and vital cabin crew training to be conducted in-house.
Photo: Tom Boon | Easy Flying
On the MRO front, Air Astana accomplished its first six-year C-Check at its engineering center in Astana in December. Since becoming the primary airline in Kazakhstan capable of independently perform heavy maintenance C1 and C2 checks on Airbus A320 Family aircraft, it has serviced 24 aircraft from its bases in Astana and Almaty. In 2024, it would induct an additional six A320 Family jets for heavy maintenance checks, three of which can undergo the total six-year C-check.
Have you ever flown with Air Astana or FlyArystan recently? Allow us to learn about it within the comments.