Air Astana, the flag carrier of the Republic of Kazakhstan, reported a 115 per cent increase in operating profit, reaching $23.9 million in the first half of the year.

Net profit was $8.3 million, versus a loss of $36.4 million in the first half of 2014, whilst passenger numbers increased by 4 per cent to 1.82 million. Total revenue was however lower by 9 per cent.

Peter Foster, president and CEO of the airline, said: “Whilst regional markets remain sluggish due to currency weakness and falling commodity prices, cheaper fuel and other cost-saving measures have combined to produce a fair result. We continue to expand and have recently added routes from Astana to Paris, Seoul, Bangkok and Tbilisi. We do not expect 2015 to be a stellar year, however our low unit cost and expanded network will allow us to take full advantage of market recovery when it comes.”      
 
The national carrier is the winner of many prestigious accolades, with its latest win at the Paris Airshow last month where it was named the ‘Best Airline Central Asia and India’ for the fourth year in succession. – TradeArabia News Service