Fifth Air Astana Ab-Initio cadet progresses to reach captain
Air Astana ’ s ab-intio pilot training programme continues to deliver positive crew development results , with Roman Suleimanov being the fifth of the earliest cadets to have progressed through the system and be promoted to Captain after six years of flying . In doing so , he joins Talgat Akhmetov , Viktor Chugay , Berdykhan Agmurov , and Timur Turgambayev .
The airline ’ s Ab-Initio programme was launched in 2009 , with a total investment of US $ 24 million being made in the programme over the past eight years . A total of 183 students have successfully graduated since the programme was launched , with 168 of them now flying the airline ’ s Boeing , Airbus and Embraer aircraft .
There are currently 14 students enrolled on the Ab-Initio programme , with another four cadets scheduled to start the 18 month programme at the Atlantic Flight Training Academy ( AFTA ) in Cork , Ireland later this month . There are also plans for two more groups to start the programme at AFTA , as well as two more groups at Flight Training Europe ( FTE ) in Jerez de la Frontera , Spain .
Individual course fees amount to US $ 100,000 , with the airline making 100 % payment in advance , but cadets only having to contribute a maximum of 50 % of this amount during their career with the company . Air Astana is constantly looking to recruit new cadets , who must be citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan , aged between 18-34 and offer good English language skills . More information on the Ab-Initio programme can be found at www . airastana . com
Air Astana commenced regular flight operations on May 15 , 2002 and currently operates a network of 64 routes . Air Astana operates a fleet of 31 aircraft including three Boeing 767-300ER , five Boeing 757-200 , thirteen Airbus A320 family aircraft , one Airbus A320 neo family aircraft and nine Embraer E-190s . Air Astana became the first carrier from Russia , the Commonwealth of Independent States and Eastern Europe to be awarded the prestigious 4-Star rating by Skytrax in its World Airline Awards 2012 and was named The Best Airline in Central Asia and India . Both accolades were repeated in 2013 , 2014 , 2015 and 2016 . Air Astana is a joint venture between Kazakhstan ’ s national wealth fund , Samruk Kazyna , and BAE Systems , with respective shares of 51 % and 49 %.
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