Air Astana beats the big freeze
Air Astana, the flag carrier of the Republic of Kazakhstan, experienced strong growth during the first half of 2010, with passenger numbers increasing by 14 percent and revenue jumping 24 percent to US$245 million compared to the same period in 2009.
The carrier performed almost 13,000 scheduled flights, with an average passenger load factor of 66 percent.
These figures were achieved despite operational disruptions caused by a very severe winter across Kazakhstan and closure of European airspace at the time of the Icelandic volcano explosion.
Half yearly profit before tax was a record US$33.5 million, up 34 percent over 2009.
Improved aircraft utilisation enabled Air Astana to increase frequencies on domestic trunk routes from both Astana and Almaty, with international service frequencies being increased to Frankfurt, Baku, Urumchi, Beijing and Kuala Lumpur.
Meanwhile, Abacus International has signed an agreement qualifying Abacus as a Competitive Booking Source for Air Astana.
This enhanced partnership brings Abacus-connected travel agents benefits, which include complete access to Air Astana’s full flight information and fares as part of its Competitive Booking Source (CBS) programme, without being subject to the Commission Booking Deductible (CBD) that will accompany non-qualified GDS bookings beyond January 1, 2011.
Ian Jarrett
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