Article from BTNews 10 DECEMBER 2018
Snow Leopard flies
The first new-generation Embraer E190-E2 for Kazakhstan’s national carrier Air Astana arrived at Nursultan Nazarbayev International airport in the Kazakh capital last week, following ferry flights from the manufacturer’s factory in Brazil.
It is the first of five Embraer E190-E2s ordered to take over from older E190s currently operating domestic and low-density regional services, with the first aircraft having entered service in 2011.
The new aircraft features a special Air Astana “Snow Leopard” livery intended to draw global attention to the threat of extinction faced by the large wild cat, which is a native of the mountain ranges in southern Kazakhstan.
Air Astana, which flies to more than 60 domestic and international routes from hubs in Astana and Almaty, says the twin-engine single-aisle Embraer E190-E2 offers lower operating costs, emissions and noise levels than before and has a range of more than 5,000km.
The Air Astana fleet consists of Boeing B767s and B757s, Airbus A320 Family aircraft including the A320neo and A321neo, and Embraer E190s. In 2012, it became the first carrier from Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States and Eastern Europe to be awarded the prestigious 4-star rating by Skytrax.
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