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About Air Astana
Air Astana, sometimes called Air Astana Airlines, is the principal airline and the flag carrier of the Republic of Kazakhstan, based in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The airline operates scheduled domestic and international services on 64 routes from its main hub, Almaty International Airport, and from its secondary hub, Astana International Airport. Air Astana is a joint venture between Kazakhstan's sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna and BAE Systems.
In 2018, Air Astana anounced the launch of its subsidary airline, FlyArystan.
Air Astana Destinations
Air Astana flies to many destinations including Abu Dhabi, Aktau, Aktobe, Amsterdam, Almaty, Baku, Bangkok, Delhi, Beijing, Dubai, Dushanbe, Kuala Lumpur, London, Omsk, Oral, Orenburg, Paris, Istanbul, Ho Chi Minh City, Frankfurt, Bishkek and many others.
Air Astana Codeshare Agreements
Air Astana has codeshare agreements with Air France, Asiana Airlines, Austrian Airlines, Air India, Bangkok Airways, Etihad Airways, KLM, Turkish Airlines and Hong Kong Airlines.
Air Astana's Fleet
Air Astana's fleet consists of A319-100, A320-200, A321-200, B757-200, B767-300ER and Embraer 190.
Air Astana Class Fares
Air Astana operates a 2 class service, Business and Economy, on all aircraft, and Economy Sleeper on its Boeing 757 fleet. The Boeing 767 and 757 are equipped with the individual in-flight entertainment system supplied by RAVE in both cabins. On other aircraft, it offers hand-held personal entertainment systems in the business class of all flights longer than 3 hours. Hot meals and alcoholic beverages are offered on all flights in Business, Economy, and Economy Sleeper. Air Astana has recently opened its lounge "The Shanyrak", the only airline lounge at the Astana International Airport.
Air Astana Baggage Allowance
Checked Baggage
Air Astana allows:
Business Class - 30kg of checked baggage
Economy Class - 20kg of checked baggage
Air Astana Frequent Flyer Program
Air Astana operates a frequent flyer club called Nomad Club to reward regular passengers with the airline. You can collect your nomad points with us when you make an Air Astana reservation: simply add your frequent flyer scheme and number to your booking. For more information visit our Airline Alliance Page.
Air Astana Route Map
Air Astana Popular Routes
Moscow Bangkok
Beijing Moscow
Moscow Almaty
Astama New York
New Delhi Moscow
Bangkok Kiev
The Fleet
Airbus A319-100
Boeing 757-200
Airbus A320-200
Boeing 767-300 ER
Airbus A321-200
Embraer 190
Air Astana Hub Airport
Almaty International Airport
Almaty International Airport is the largest international airport in Kazakhstan. It is located about 15 km (9.3 mi) northeast of Almaty, the country's largest city and commercial capital. Airlines that fly from and to Almaty International Airport include Asiana Airlines, Aeroflot, KLM, Pegasus, Turkish Airlines and Bek Air. It is expected that FlyFrystan will soon operate domestic routes out of the airport.
Air Astana Alternative Airlines
Air Astana News
27th June 2018
Air Astana hold ceremony for 16 year anniversary e
Air Astana recently celebrated their 16 year anniversary with a press event in Moscow. At the event, CEO of Air Astana, Peter Foster was given the 'Honorary Member of the World Community for the Lives of Great People' award. Air Astana has been flying to Moscow since its debut year back in 2002 and it's been one of the most popular destinations for its customers ever since. In 2018, Air Astana flies to a total of seven different cities in Russia.
Speaking at the press event, Peter Foster said that Russia is one of the most important places that Air Astana fly to and he has no doubt that the airline will continue to add more services to the country as demand from the Kazakh public continues to grow.
Since the airline was launched in 2002, Air Astana has reportedly flown over 4 million passengers to Russia.
22nd June 2018
Air Astana adds 2 Russian routes
Air Astana launched 2 new routes to Russia in 2 days, from Astana to Tyumen and Kazan on 2nd and 3rd June. A cake was baked to mark the inaugural service on the former route, which, like the Kazan sector, will be operated 3 x times weekly with E190s. There is no incumbent competition on either of the new links.
Air Astana has launched 2 new links to Russia from Astana, commencing services to Tyumen on 2nd June and Kazan on 3rd June. The 792-kilometre Tyumen sector and the 1,551-kilometre Kazan link will each be flown 3 x weekly. Both airport pairs will be operated by the carrier’s E190s and there is no incumbent competition on either route. The latest network expansion coincides with the delivery of the airline’s second Airbus A321neo on 2nd June.
Russia, Georgia, Turkey, UAE, Central Asia and China are the domestic and international routes including flights. The new aircraft offers 179 seats in a two-class layout (28 in Business, 151 in Economy). In total Air Astana has ordered 17 A320neo family aircraft.
4th June 2018
Air Astana upgrade and add to their schedule
Air Astana will operate 4 new routes that will connect Kazakhstan and Germany this summer. This comes after a partnership with Lufthansa that saw Air Astana launch 2 other new routes in 2017. The Kazakh carrier will also upgrade its service between Astana International Airport (TSE) and London Heathrow (LHR). From June 2018, Air Astana will operate this route daily.
This is part of a larger schedule upgrade from Kazakhstan to Europe. Air Astana has seen a great deal of growth in the European market recently. For example, in summer 2018 Air Astana will operate 26 weekly flights to Western Europe, whereas, in the same period of 2014, they only operated 16 weekly flights.
25th May 2018
Air Astana open Aviation Technical Centre on 16th birthday
To celebrate their 16th anniversary, Air Astana opened a brand new Aviation Technical Centre at the airport's hub, Astana International (TSE). The new Aviation Technical Centre wil be used for all of Air Astana's aircraft engineering and servicing. The Aviation Technical Centre has 5,556 square meters of floor space, giving it enough space to take in widebody and narrowbody aircraft alike.
President and CEO of Air Astana, Peter Foster, stated that the opening of the Aviation Technical Centre marks the cause for a shared celebration for Air Astana and the city of Astana, which are both celebrating 16th and 20th anniversaries respectively.
30th April 2018
Kazakhstan grant 72-hour transit free visa to Indian travellers who fly with Air Astana
From April—December 2018, the Kazakhstan government are offering Indian citizens a free 72-hour visa on the condition that they fly with the nations carrier, Air Astana. The visa is eligible for stopovers in Astana or Almaty and can be used by solo visitors or group tours.
This comes as part of a larger plan to make visiting Kazakhstan easier for people in India. Kazakhstan's Ambassador in India, Bulat Sarsenbayev, expressed that Kazakhstan and India are interested in simplifying their visa system and are looking to offer this type of scheme more often.
15th April 2018
Air Astana pave the way for Kazakh airline fleet growth
October 2018 may mark Kazakhstan as the first country with aircraft from all three families of new generation single aisle re-engined aircraft. Air Astana became one of the first A320neo operators in 2016, and later this year will become one of the first Embraer E190-E2 operators. Kazakhstan’s second largest airline, SCAT, took delivery of its first 737 MAX 8 at the end of Mar-2018. For all three new aircraft types to be operating in Kazakhstan represents a major transformation, given that the market has historically been dominated by ageing aircraft and Russian models. Kazakhstan became independent in 1991, but for years its airlines continued to operate Soviet era aircraft.
Change began with Air Astana, which has only ever operated Western aircraft in its 16-year history and took its first new aircraft nearly 10 years ago. SCAT has been on the scene for 2 decades but only phased out its last Russian aircraft in 2016, and the 737 MAX 8 marks the first time the airline has ever taken delivery of a new Western aircraft.
27th March 2018
Air Astana to take London service daily
Kazakhstan national carrier Air Astana will begin offering daily flights between Nazarbayev International airport in Astana to London Heathrow from 1 June.
The additional Wednesday and Friday flights are available to purchase now. Flights are served by B757 aircraft in three classes, with 16 seats in business, 108 in Economy and 12 in Economy Sleeper, which allows economy passengers to book a row of three seats for one person.
Customers flying from London can connect with onward flights from Astana to Almaty or on to long-haul destinations such as Delhi and Novosibirsk.
Peter Foster, CEO and president of Air Astana, commented: “We are delighted to have finally secured daily flight status on what is such a prestigious and popular route – the only direct service linking the UK to Kazakhstan. London has consistently grown in significance with both business and leisure travellers, and it comes at an opportune time too for the airline strategically, as we start to plan for an IPO listing in both London and Kazakhstan.”
5th March 2018
Cathay Pacific and Air Astana announce partnership, boosting links between countries in new Silk Road plan
From this month, the city’s flagship carrier and Kazakhstan’s national airline will sell tickets and market flights on each other’s routes across Asia and Australia
Hong Kong’s flagship carrier on Monday announced a partnership with the national airline of one of Central Asia’s economic pioneers – Kazakhstan – giving it a stronger foothold in a region integral to the “Belt and Road Initiative”, China’s global trade development strategy.
Starting this month, Cathay Pacific Airways and Air Astana will sell tickets and market flights on each other’s routes across Asia and Australia under a code-share agreement.
The deal gives Cathay Pacific access to the resource-rich emerging economy associated with some of the largest Belt and Road projects, including the Khorgos Gateway dry port on its border with mainland China, rail links to London and Iran and the mega Central Asian gas pipeline.
For Air Astana, it means riding on Hong Kong’s flagship airline to offer passengers from Central Asia greater and smoother access to Southeast Asia and Australia.
“The real commercial value is the network,” Air Astana vice-president of marketing and sales Richard Ledger told the Post in an interview.
To partner with Cathay, Air Astana will drop its existing commercial code-share deal with the city’s third-largest carrier, Hong Kong Airlines.
“We are after the best partner in each hub for distribution. Clearly Cathay are the best,” Ledger explained, adding that the Hong Kong Airlines arrangement did not give the airline what Cathay could.
Under the deal, the CX code will be added to Air Astana’s non-stop flights between Hong Kong and Almaty, Kazakhstan’s largest city, and flights between it and the capital Astana, from the middle of this month.
Cathay will also code-share Air Astana’s flights from Almaty to Bangkok and Seoul. In return, Air Astana will add a third weekly service between Almaty and Hong Kong from March 25 and place its KC code on selected Cathay flights between Hong Kong, Singapore and major Australian cities.
“We are delighted to join with Air Astana,” Cathay Pacific commercial director Ronald Lam Siu-por said in a statement. “With its vibrant economy, which is set to grow as a result of its integral role in the Belt and Road Initiative, and beautiful natural landscapes, Kazakhstan has many attractions for both business and leisure travellers alike.”
Initiated by Beijing in 2013, the US$900 billion initiative envisions a modern-day Silk Road with maritime and land networks connecting China with Asia, Africa and Europe to boost trade and economic growth.
Cathay had previously used code-share flights as a means of accessing harder-to-reach destinations which would not be financially viable as new and independently operated routes. The Astana deal complements an identical arrangement signed with MIAT Mongolian Airlines last year.
Air Astana carried 4.2 million passengers last year on its fleet of 32 single- and twin-aisle aircraft. Its strategy has been to fly smaller aircraft to keep costs down and target transit passengers travelling around Central Asia. It has 60 domestic and international routes, mainly in Asia and Europe.
Cathay Pacific and sister airline Cathay Dragon operate 175 passenger aircraft and 20 freighter planes flying to almost 200 destinations in 49 countries and territories. They carried 34.8 million travellers in 2017.
Transport equity analyst Corrine Png described the deal as “win-win”, as both carriers could benefit from each other’s competitive advantages, even though the financial impact would be “marginal”.
“China Southern Airlines, Air China and Hainan Airlines already operate flights to Kazakhstan so Cathay is already slightly late in the game to leverage on the growing Belt and Road traffic longer-term,” she said.
In the interview, Ledger spoke of Air Astana’s future plans, confirming a dual listing in Kazakhstan and London next year. While Hong Kong was previously considered a potential venue for a secondary listing, Ledger did not want to say why plans had changed.
The Kazakh airline has produced healthy profits in every year of its operation, starting in 2002, except for its first ever full-year loss in 2016. It recorded an operating profit of US$39.1 million (HK$306 million) last year on revenue of US$754 million.
11th January 2018
Major blizzard causes state of emergency in Kazakh capital
The Mayor of Astana, Asset Issekeshev, has declared an emergency situation today in Astana, asking that all businesses and state institutions cease operations. The only operations which were asked to continue were emergency services. This, of course, included Nazarbayev International Airport, although conditions are set to improve towards the evening hours. Air Astana have been forced to cancel 30 flights and delay 4, including 14 international journeys.
11th September 2017
Air Astana is the first airline to offer Inmarsat GX Aviation on Wide-Body
Rockwell Collins’ cabin system is now on-board Kazakhstan-based Air Astana’s fleet of Boeing 767s, Rockwell Collins said. The cabin system uses Inmarsat’s Global Xpress (GX) Aviation capabilities to provide in-flight connectivity.
11th September 2017
Air Astana in-flight wifi no available
Kazakhstan’s national carrier Air Astana has begun offering passengers in-flight wifi following the installation of the service on its first B767 aircraft.
The airline will be installing wifi on all three of its B767s, with accessibility open to business and economy class passengers in three payment options. These range from Light (15MB), Business (50MB) and Super (100MB), all operating at an estimated speed of between two to five mbps. This opens up the option for web browsing, using social media, checking email and listening to audio, though likely not video streaming. Air Astana’s second B767 is set to be outfitted with wifi capability on October 20 this year and is the first airline to offer GX Aviation on widebody aircraft. The carrier’s B767s are outfitted with 30 business class seats in a staggered 1-2-1 layout and 193 economy seats in a 2-3-2 set up.
9th September 2017
Air Astana seeks easier visa norms for Indians
Kazakh national carrier wants to connect Delhi and Mumbai with daily flights. Air Astana started flying to India in 2004, and now operates 10 flights a week —seven between Almaty and Delhi, and three between Astana, the capital, and Delhi. The airline expects to launch a flight to Mumbai in 2019, and aims to fly from Delhi and Mumbai every day to Astana and Almaty, operating up to 21 flights a week. It also carries business to Hyderabad and has a tie-up with Air India for transit/connect passengers.
22nd June 2017
Kazakh national carrier starts flights to New Delhi
Air Astana will start direct flights from Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, to New Delhi, on July 2. The service will be operated thrice weekly utilising both the Airbus A320 and Embraer 190 aircraft. On Mondays and Thursdays, flight KC 241 will depart Astana at 07.20 and arrive in New Delhi at 10.55, with the return flight КС 242 departing New Delhi at 12.00 and arriving in Astana at 17.00. On Sundays, flight KC 249 will depart Astana at 20.35 and arrive in New Delhi at 00.10 the following day, with the return flight КС 250 departing New Delhi at 01.10 and arriving in Astana at 06.10.
June 2017
Air Astana launched weekly nonstop Uralsk Frankfurth services using an Airbus A320 configured with 16 business and 132 economy-class seats
Agreements with partner airlines will allow passengers in both directions to connect seamlessly in Frankfurt across flight networks in Europe and North America. Air Astana operates flights to more than 60 domestic and international routes. Its fleet consists of Boeing 767, 757, Airbus A319, A320, A320neo, A321 and Embraer E190 aircraft.
In November 2016, Air Astana announced it was planning to open a hangar at its base at Astana airport. The new hangar, which is to be open by May or June of 2017, is planned to be used for maintenance. It will also enable the airline to offer maintenance services to other carriers. Currently, the hangar is being built for maintenance purposes of the narrow-body A320 family, but it also will be capable of handling larger, wide-body airliners Boeing 767s and 787s, which are planned to be delivered to the carrier by 2019. The new service center will focus of carrying out light forms of maintenance, especially A-checks. The new hangar will also include special shops, which carry out wheel maintenance, avionics procedures, etc.
In November 2016, Air Astana announced it had taken delivery of its first A320neo at Airbus headquarters in Toulouse in the presence of airline executives and government officials. The aircraft leased from Air Lease is part of a deal announced at Farnborough Airshow 2015 for 11 A320neo family aircraft. The A320neo will join Air Astana’s Airbus fleet of 13 A320 Family aircraft, operating on domestic and international network. Air Astana’s A320neo is powered by Pratt & Whitney engines and features a two-class cabin layout, seating 16 passengers in business and 132 in economy.
Air Astana announced a code-sharing deal with Lufthansa. Kazakhstan’s largest airline Air Astana made a significant step to enhance its potential in European direction having signed a code-sharing agreement with German air carrier Lufthansa. The ceremony was held on March 15 in Astana and the document shall become effective from March 26, 2017. The new codeshare will cover Air Astana’s flights from Astana to Frankfurt and Lufthansa’s flights from Frankfurt to Almaty and Astana. As a result, both carriers will extend their route networks and be able to offer their passengers through fares and single ticket check-in for both passenger boarding and baggage throughout the companies’ connection flights. The agreement also implies the parties will launch a single-code flight between Atyrau and Frankfurt within the next 12 months. Apart from that, business-class passengers and members of Air Astana’s Nomad Club frequent-flyer program will now have access to Lufthansa’s business lounges. The fleet of the national flag-carrier consists of nine Embraer 190s, an A320neo, an A319, eight A320s, four Airbus 321s, plus five narrow-body Boeing 757s and three heavy Boeing 767-300ERs.
In April 2017, Air Astana announces commencement of Kostanay - Hannover service, flying 2 x Weekly from 17th June 2017. The service will be operated by an Airbus 320, on Saturdays and Sundays.
In March 2017, Air Astana strikes a code-sharing deal with Lufthansa. Kazakhstan’s largest airline Air Astana made a significant step to enhance its potential in European direction having signed a code-sharing agreement with German air carrier Lufthansa. The ceremony was held on March 15 in Astana and the document shall become effective from March 26, 2017. The new codeshare will cover Air Astana’s flights from Astana to Frankfurt and Lufthansa’s flights from Frankfurt to Almaty and Astana. As a result, both carriers will extend their route networks and be able to offer their passengers through fares and single ticket check-in for both passenger boarding and baggage throughout the companies’ connection flights. The agreement also implies the parties will launch a single-code flight between Atyrau and Frankfurt within the next 12 months. Apart from that, business-class passengers and members of Air Astana’s Nomad Club frequent-flyer program will now have access to Lufthansa’s business lounges.
In April 2017, the government of Kazakhstan outlined additional plans concerning the privatisation of multiple state-owned enterprises including Air Astana. Air Astana CEO Peter Foster has since reiterated that the carrier is still heading for a mid-2018 IPO despite comments attributed to National Economy minister Timur Suleimenov suggesting a possible delay until 2019/20.
In April 2017, Air Astana announced its summer schedule with a major growth in services operating from the rapidly developing Astana hub. The new schedule sees service frequencies from Astana increase to Beijing (4) and Urumqi (6), China, Istanbul, Turkey (4), London, UK (5), Novosibirsk, Russia (7), Omsk, Russia (5), Tashkent, Uzbekistan (3), St Petersburg, Russia (7), Tbilisi, Georgia (4), and Yekaterinburg, Russia (7). In addition, Air Astana will be resuming a service from Astana to Kiev, Ukraine on 2nd June 2017.
In June 2017, Air Astana announced it was resuming Kiev-Astana service. Kazakhstan’s Air Astana has resumed flying between the Kazakh capital, Astana, and Kiev, Ukraine, three years after suspending the service in the wake of the shootdown of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17. Exploiting its Central Asia location, the carrier will hold down capacity by partly operating the five weekly flights with Embraer 190s. Astana is 2,830 km (1,760 mi.) west of Kiev, well within the 4,445 km range of the carrier’s eight E190LRs.
In June 2017, Air Astana announced it was launching Christian Lacroix and Furla amenity kits. Air Astana has launched new amenity kits by French fashion house Christian Lacroix and Italian designer Furla. According to the carrier, the Furla women’s bags “captivate the brand essence in a miniature version of the brand’s famous retail handbags including the quintessential Furla gold zip pull”. Meanwhile, the Christain Lacroix kits “embody the spirit of the famous Parisian atelier which is known for its flamboyant prints and bold use of colour and feature the company’s signature butterfly pattern”.
The kits also now feature slippers, “replacing the flight socks commonly found in on-board amenity. The new kits will be offered to business class passengers on short and long-haul flights. The airline recently added a fifth weekly frequency to its route between London Heathrow and the Kazakh capital Astana. The new Sunday service adds to existing departures on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
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Browse the most popular Air Astana flight routes to destinations within many regions. Alternative Airlines can help you make reservations on Air Astana. Use the following list of routes to help you plan your next flight. Air Astana flights on Alternative Airlines to save big! Alternative Airlines is an online travel agency, specialising in booking lesser known airlines and remote destinations.
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