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Air Astana takes delivery of its first Sharklet equipped Airbus A320

Air Astana (Almaty), Kazakhstan’s flag carrier, has taken delivery of its first A320 aircraft equipped with Airbus’ Sharklet fuel saving wing tip devices. The airline becomes the first in the region to benefit from the new wing-tip devices. Air Astana’s A320-232 P4-KBB (msn 5613), powered by IAE V2500 engines, features a comfortable two class cabin, seating 148 passengers with 16 in business class and 132 in economy.

Sharklets are newly designed wing-tip devices that improve the aircraft’s aerodynamics and significantly cut the airline’s fuel burn and emissions by four per cent on longer sectors. They are made from light-weight composites and are 2.4 meters tall. Sharklets are an option on A320 Family aircraft. They offer the flexibility to A320 Family operators of either adding around 100 nautical miles more range or allowing an increased payload capability of up to 450 kilograms.

Air Astana started commercial service with its first Airbus aircraft, an A320, in 2006, and is currently operating one A319, seven A320s and four A321s.

Copyright Photo: Eurospot. The pictured A320-232 F-WWIC became P4-KBB when it was handed over on May 4, 2013 at Toulouse.

Air Astana:

Air Astana takes delivery of its first new A321 direct-delivery from Airbus

Air Astana (Almaty), Kazakhstan’s flag carrier, has taken delivery of its first A321 (PR-KDA, msn 5357) out of a total of six A320 Family aircraft ordered from Airbus in May 2008. The delivery was celebrated in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. The aircraft will join Air Astana’s fleet, which already includes 10 A320 Family aircraft, operated on the airline’s domestic and international network.

The airline’s A321, powered by IAE V2500 engines, features a two class cabin layout, seating 28 passengers in business class and 151 in economy.

Air Astana started commercial service with its first Airbus aircraft, an A320, in 2006, and is currently operating one A319, seven A320s and two A321s.

Air Astana:

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Air Astana retires its last two Fokker 50s on November 30

Air Astana (Almaty) has retired its last Fokker F.27 Mk. 050 (Fokker 50). The airline issued this statement:

Air Astana continues to phase out the fleet of Fokker 50 turboprops, with the last two aircraft scheduled to be returned to the lessor in January 2013. The original fleet of six aircraft will be fully replaced by new generation Embraer E-190 jet airliners by mid 2013.

During eight years of service with Air Astana, the Fokker 50 fleet completed 50,000 domestic flights, flew 90,000 hours and safely carried 1.5 million passengers.

As a result of the Fokker 50 being withdrawn from service, Air Astana ceased operating Astana to Uralsk, Astana to and Atyrau to Uralsk services on December 1, 2012. The airports at Uralsk and Semey do not meet the international safety and equipment standards required to support Embraer E-190 jet operations. The resumption of flights to Uralsk and Semey will only be possible after a major upgrade of airports to jet standard.

“Modernizing the fleet is a strategic priority of Air Astana, with new generation Embraer E-190s having started replacing Fokker 50 turboprops on the short-haul routes over the past 18 months. The new aircraft offer our passengers more comfort and time-saving convenience to destinations Kazakhstan, Central Asia, Russia and the Caucasus”, said Peter Foster, President of Air Astana. “Air Astana regrets any inconvenience caused to passengers caused by the withdraw of these turboprop services, but safety is our number one priority”.

Air Astana: