Air Astana has increased its operating profit by 115 per cent in the first half of 2015.
Kazakhstan’s national carrier recorded a net profit of $8.3 million against a loss of $36.4 million in the first half of 2014.
Passenger numbers also rose for this period by 4 per cent to 1.82 million.
President and CEO Peter Foster said: “While 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.”
Air Astana recently concluded an agreement with for seven Airbus 320 family NEOs, including 4 A321 Long Range aircraft, to be delivered from 2016.