Air Astana operates repatriation flights for Kazakhstani citizens in Ukraine

Air Astana successfully undertook repatriation flights for Kazakhstan citizens in Ukraine on 28 February and 1 March 2022.

Flights were operated using Airbus family aircraft between Katowice in southern Poland and Almaty/Nur-Sultan, with the first flight carrying 175 passengers and the second one carrying 120 passengers. Passengers are flown free of charge under an agreement with the Government of Kazakhstan.

Peter Foster, Air Astana President and CEO, who went to Kyiv on the last international flight into the country on 23 February with Alexander Neboga, a senior colleague, to organise repatriation flights, and who returned on the first of these, said: “The situation on the Ukrainian-Poland border is absolutely critical. I have never seen anything like this before, and hopefully will never again. There are thousands and thousands of people trying to cross the border. It would have been more challenging had there not been support of the Ambassador and the Embassy of Kazakhstan. We will continue with repatriation flights until we get every Kazakhstan citizen out.”

Air Astana had suspended its regular flights to Kyiv until at least 7 March due to the emergency closure of Ukraine airspace.