Aerospace Diary

AINONLINE by    NEELAM MATHEWS Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev (right) and Bombardier president and CEO Pierre Beaudoin meet in Astana on February 26. March 4, 2014, 11:12 AM The Central Asian Republic of Kazakhstan plans to launch a domestic airline, Air Kazakhstan, in early 2015 with a fleet of 10 new Bombardier Q400 twin turboprops. Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev announced the plans with Bombardier president and  CEO  Pierre Beaudoin on February 26 following a meeting between the two at January’s World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to discuss wider cooperation in air and rail transport. “We can build on the experience of starting a new airline from Air Astana,” a 12-year-old joint venture between Kazakhstan’s national wealth fund Samruk Kazyna and the  UK ’s  BAE  Systems, confirmed Nazarbayev. “We plan to transfer technology, provide training to Kazakhstan’s pilots, construct a...

AIN AIR TRANSPORT PERSPECTIVE  »  JANUARY 6, 2014 by    NEELAM MATHEWS Air Astana plans to take delivery of a third Boeing 767-300ER this year. (Image: Boeing) January 6, 2014, 1:30 PM Resolved on tapping the booming Central Asian market, global alliances SkyTeam, OneWorld and Star Alliance have approached Kazakhstan national carrier Air Astana with offers to join their ranks. In response, the airline recently commissioned U.S.-based Seabury Group to prepare a report on whether it should enter an alliance “and which one, because all alliances want us to join them,” Air Astana president Peter Foster told  AIN  in Astana recently. “The year 2014 will be a big year for us as we will decide how to structure our medium-haul fleet,” said Foster. “Our first consideration will be range and then costs when we evaluate our options.” Over the past two years Air Astana rolled over virtually its entire fleet, replacing all its...