Kazakh carrier Air Astana’s robust defence kept it off the European blacklist when all other carriers from the former Soviet territory were banned. President Peter Foster explains how it achieved this seemingly impossible feat and what’s next for the carrier, writes Gunter Endres in Almaty

Like the elusive snow leopard in the Tien Shan mountains of Kazakhstan, Air Astana is a rarity among airlines in this vast and land-locked central Asian republic. Air Astana is the de facto flag-carrier, with equal stakes held by the Kazakhstan government and BAE Systems. And, with its experienced multi-national management team, an all-western fleet, internationally-approved engineering and maintenance and a well-structured safety system, Air Astana is reconnecting this remote former Soviet territory with the global community.

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