New direct flights connect China with Kazakhstan

Air Astana, the national carrier of Kazakhstan, recently opened new direct routes from Almaty, the country's capital, to major Chinese cities.

The route from Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province, to Almaty was opened earlier this year, becoming the airline's fourth direct flight to the Chinese mainland, preceded by flights to Urumqi, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region; Sanya, Hainan province; and Beijing.

China and Kazakhstan mutually waived visas in November, with a maximum travel time of 30 days.

By connecting with Guangzhou, the airline hopes to help strengthen Kazakhstan's ties with the prosperous Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

With the new route to Baiyun International Airport in Guangzhou, Air Astana will have 23 flights to China each week. The inaugural flight, which was completed in March, used an Airbus A321LR aircraft with a flight time of 5 hours and 22 minutes.

Peter Foster, chief executive officer of Air Astana, said China has long been a strategically important market for the company, which has seen strong growth in business and leisure passenger traffic since it began service between Almaty and Beijing more than 20 years ago.

"The opening of the new route to Guangzhou marks a very important step for Air Astana in expanding its network in the vast Chinese market," Foster said.

Weekly flights will include three from Guangzhou to Almaty, five between Beijing and Almaty, two from Beijing to Astana, five from Urumqi to Almaty, and two from Sanya to Almaty.

Islam Sekerbekov, Air Astana's senior regional manager for China and Mongolia, said the new flight to Guangzhou has greatly improved Central Asia's connection with southern China. It will further promote cooperation and development in areas such as economy, trade, commerce, investment and cultural tourism and help build up the "Air Silk Road" for close exchanges between China and Kazakhstan in various fields, he said.

The airline has always offered a high-level of safety and service, Sekerbekov said, constantly optimizing and innovating in-flight products so that travelers from China can fully experience the Kazakh culture of hospitality.

The main aircraft type operating on the routes between China and Kazakhstan will be the young A321LR fleet, whose interiors are designed with elements of Kazakh culture.

"We offer comfortable fully-flat business class seats, economy class sleeper seats and economy class seats with an independent wide-screen entertainment system," Sekerbekov said, noting that China and Kazakhstan are friendly neighbors with a strong relationship. Bilateral economic and trade cooperation has seen steady development, while tourism and cultural exchanges have become increasingly close, he said.

Air Astana has been collaborating with major stakeholders to promote Kazakhstan as a travel destination and to strengthen overall ties between the two countries, he added.

Meanwhile, FlyArystan, another Kazakh airline, has recently launched another direct flight from Almaty to Xinjiang's Yining to enhance connectivities between the two countries.

The first flight, designated FS719t, landed at Yili Yining International Airport in mid-May. The flight took 55 minutes with 180 passengers — a full flight — fulfilling the promise of a one-hour air corridor between China and Kazakhstan and opening a new chapter in connectivity with Xinjiang.

The Almaty-Yining route is the second international route opened by FlyArystan to China and the second international air route at Yili Yining Airport after it was upgraded.

The airline restarted the Astana-Urumqi route on April 13, marking an important step in the expansion of its network and bearing witness to Yining's internationalization and the improvement of aviation service from Kazakhstan, said Richard Ledger, president and CEO.

With the unique advantages of regional short-distance transportation, affordable ticket strategies and a dense route network in Central Asia, FlyArystan's two routes to Xinjiang will promote connectivity, he said.

Kazakhstan was long a major node on China's ancient Silk Road and is currently an important country involved in China's Belt and Road Initiative. Almaty is the largest city in Kazakhstan and also the center of the country's economy, finance, culture and transportation.