Air Astana: Central Asia’s Aviation Champion

Introduction

We are initiating coverage of Air Astana in a wider Cordoba initiative that is to identify and evaluate Central Asian equities operating in unique domestic and international markets. This note acts as an initial overview of Air Astana and its operations creating a roadmap for follow-on research that will explore Air Astana’s model, challenges and industrial landscape.

Business Model

Air Astana is a full service airline serving passengers, cargo and charters, much like many legacy national carriers we know of such as Turkish Airlines.
The airline operates out of Kazakhstan with its main hubs in Almaty and Astana.
Air Astana Group is the market leader. They employ a dual brand strategy with Air Astana operating as the main international carrier, but also have a sister low cost regional offering through FlyArystan, accounting for approximately 15% of regional seat capacity (Source: OAG, Central Asia: The World’s Fastest Growing Aviation Market, 2025).

Industry Overview

According to OAG’s report Central Asia: The World’s Fastest Growing Aviation Market (2025), Central Asia is currently the world’s fastest-growing aviation market, with airline seat capacity increasing by almost 500% over the past 20 years, corresponding to a CAGR of 7.7%.
Kazakhstan is the region’s largest aviation market, accounting for more than 50% of total airline seat capacity despite representing only around 25% of Central Asia’s population. The country’s aviation market is predominantly domestic, with 71% of total seat capacity allocated to domestic routes, reflecting both Kazakhstan’s vast geography and the importance of air connectivity.
The competitive landscape has evolved rapidly following market liberalization: the share of low-cost carriers increased from 4.6% in 2015 to 21% in 2025, while 125 airlines currently operate in the region, although 71% of total capacity is still provided by Central Asian carriers.
The Group competes primarily with SCAT Airlines and Uzbekistan Airways among regional carriers, as well as international airlines such as Turkish Airlines, Ural Airlines, and Aeroflot.

Strategic Positioning

Air Astana’s strategic positioning is built on several distinctive competitive advantages:

First, Kazakhstan’s location at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, the Middle East and China enables the airline to develop transit traffic through its hubs in Almaty and Astana.
Second, the Group’s dual-brand strategy combines the full-service carrier Air Astana with the low-cost airline FlyArystan, allowing it to serve both premium and price-sensitive market segments.
Third, Air Astana maintains one of the industry’s lowest unit cost bases while operating a modern, fuel-efficient fleet and delivering award-winning service quality.

Routes & Fleet

The airline operates 132 routes between 22 different countries. Similar to many national carrier counterparts, Air Astana uses a hub and spoke model targeted at connecting traffic between Europe and Asia.
Some of its notable routes include: London Heathrow, Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Bangkok, New Delhi.
The airline has a diverse fleet between narrow and wide body jets with a relatively low collective average age of 6.3 years. The fleet consists of 34 Air Astana jets and 28 FlyArystan jets.

Aircraft	Boeing 767	Airbus A320/21	Airbus A320NEO/21NEO/21NEO LR	Total
Air Astana	3	3	28	34
FlyArystan	–	16	12	28

In March 2026, Airbus confirmed that the Air Astana Group has signed a firm order for 25 Airbus A320neo Family aircraft, the largest ever direct order by the group. Similarly, the airline confirmed that they placed a firm order for 15 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners with an intention to purchase 10 further 787’s.
Delivery is expected through until the early 2030s with their aircraft selection indicating a diverse mix of short, medium and long-haul options that simultaneously modernises the fleet with highly fuel efficient aircraft.

Ownership Structure

Air Astana completed its triple-listed $370mn IPO in February 2024, trading on the London Stock Exchange, Astana International Exchange and Kazakhstan Stock Exchange.
Its ownership structure is approximately as follows:

Samruk-Kazyna National Welfare Fund JSC: 41%
Unified Accumulative Pension Fund JSC: 6.5%
Other: 51.8%
Before the IPO, BAE Systems and the Kazakh sovereign wealth fund formed a joint venture to form the company in 2001 but as of 2026, BAE Systems intend on selling their whole stake. Their holding has reduced gradually to 16.95% post IPO and a further 10.1% was sold in Dec’25.

ESG

Air Astana formalized its sustainability strategy by launching an ESG Strategy and a Low-Carbon Development Programme (LCDP) for 2023–2032. The programme targets net-zero emissions by 2050 and includes a 5% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) blending target by 2030.

In partnership with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and KazMunayGas, the airline is assessing the feasibility of SAF production and use in Kazakhstan.
Fleet renewal also plays a central role, with the replacement of older Airbus aircraft by A320neo and A321neo models, which reduce fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions by up to 20% while lowering aircraft noise by 50%.

Principal Risks and Challenges

According to the Group’s 2025 Integrated Report, fleet availability remains one of the company’s most significant risks, as industry-wide supply chain disruptions and mandatory Pratt & Whitney PW1100G engine inspections following manufacturer defects are expected to constrain aircraft availability through at least 2028. During 2025, the Group performed 22 unscheduled engine removals, mitigating the impact through additional aircraft leases and spare engines.

Fuel price volatility also remains a major source of uncertainty, with jet fuel accounting for approximately 24% of total operating costs despite lower average prices in 2025.
In addition, Air Astana is exposed to geopolitical tensions that may affect airspace availability and route planning, as well as exchange-rate fluctuations due to the depreciation of the Kazakhstani tenge.