Air Astana Upgrades Its Fleet With Airbus A321neo Jets

As Kazakhstan looks to increase its air transportation capacity and upgrade its air fleet, advanced technical capabilities have become a top priority. The country’s largest air carrier, Air Astana, received this week its second Airbus A321neo jet – a narrow-body, commercial passenger twin-engine airliner manufactured by the European multinational aeronautical conglomerate.

“The aircraft is equipped with an individual entertainment system in both travel classes, and will operate both domestic and international flights, including such destinations as Russia, Georgia, Turkey, the UAE, Central Asia, and China,” Air Astana reported on Tuesday.

As a part of the Airbus A320neo family of airliners, the A321 is a mid-size plane designed for international long-haul routes up to 6,850 km (4,256 mi).

“Neo” in the model name stands for “new engine option,” and the A321 comes with a choice of French-made CFM International LEAP-1A engines or PW1000G engines, manufactured by U.S Pratt & Whitney. Kazakhstan’s purchases will be equipped with engines by Pratt & Whitney.

The aircraft is the last step of the A320 Enhanced (A320E) modernization program and Airbus’ most fuel-efficient airplane, which saves 15 percent more fuel per flight than that of similar-sized commercial jets due to its new generation engine. In addition, specialized technology used in the engines dramatically decrease noise.

The board of the A321 is equipped with a new cabin, which features comfortable seats, while the distance between the seats is increased. Passenger amenities include an individual multimedia complex built into the back of each seat. Previously, such systems were available only for Boeing-757-200 and Boeing-767-300 ER.

The board of the A321 is equipped with a new cabin, which features comfortable seats, while the distance between the seats is increased. Passenger amenities include an individual multimedia complex built into the back of each seat. / Grigory Bedenko / informburo.kz

Air Astana will modernize its fleet with three A321’s and one A320 aircraft, following an agreement signed in 2015 between Air Astana and the world’s largest independent aircraft leasing company, AerCap, which is headquartered in the Netherlands. Air Astana expects to buy a total of 17 planes within the Airbus A320neo family.

“Thus, we will gradually replace all our old aircraft such as Boeing-757, A320 and A321,” said Andrei Oliya, the technical director at Air Astana. “We invest a lot to repair them and to maintenance their airworthiness. Therefore, they will be replaced in 2019,” he added.

Air Astana is considered the largest carrier in Central Asia and operates flights to about 70 destinations throughout the world. In 2017, it carried about 4.2 million passengers, recording a growth in passenger traffic by 12 percent and revenue by 22 percent, after a fall in 2015 and 2016.

Air Astana’s fleet currently consists of roughly 30 planes, including 13 planes from the A320 family, one A320neo, and one A321neo, which arrived in January. The other jets operated by the Kazakhstani air carrier include Boeing’s 767-300ER, 757-200, and Embraer’s 190.

Earlier this year, officials from Air Astana inked an agreement with AerCap to purchase five Embraer E190-E2 jets, narrow-body, medium-range, twin-engine passenger jets designed for medium-haul routes. The first batch is expected to arrive later this year, when the airplanes will be used to operate domestic flights inside Kazakhstan and flights to other Caspian or Central Asian cities, such as Baku, Bishkek, Tashkent, Dushanbe, as well as cities across Russia.