EXPERT OPINION
Aeroflot’s achievements,
effectiveness and guidelines
For the last several years Aeroflot proved itself as a reliable and major representative in the airline industry
internationally and in Kazakhstan. We talked with Mr Igor Levin, general representative of the company
in Kazakhstan, to know about Aeroflot’s achievements, effectiveness and guidelines in particular.
Igor Levin,
General Representative of
PJSC "Aeroflot" in Kazakhstan
This year, Brand Finance, the world's
leading expert in business valuation
consultancy, has recognized Aeroflot as
the world's strongest aviation brand.
According to the general assessment,
Aeroflot outscored 49 airlines ranked.
Could you tell us what factors managed
to achieve such results?
The calculation for the brand strength
index is based on the analysis of about 30
factors. They include objective indicators
– fleet size and average age, safety data,
staff, investments, financial and operational
indicators, client loyalty level, and key industry
ratings of Skytrax, IATA, Bloomberg and
many other factors. The brand strength index
gives an idea of the company's contribution
to the total result of commercial and
operational activities and, in fact, evaluates
the effectiveness of what marketing has
accomplished.
Aeroflot fully meets all of the above factors
in the brand strength assessment, including
the fact that it is one of the world's youngest
aviation fleets, which includes 210 aircraft
and is one of the world's leaders in flight
operation safety (the Safety Assessment of
Foreign Aircraft Program (SAFA) – Aeroflot’s
index corresponds to the level of the world's
leading airlines).
In 2016, we were the first Russian company
to win the Skytrax four-star rating for quality
of service, and for the sixth time named for
the prestigious Skytrax World Airline Awards
in the category 'Best Eastern Europe Airlines'.
TripAdvisor has named us 'The Best Airline in
Europe', and the business class of the Russian
carrier is considered the best in the world. In
36
world monitor
China, Aeroflot has received the official title
of the most beloved foreign airline. We are
proud to be carrying this title.
The highest rating of the Aeroflot brand
strength is the visible proof of its status
for us as the largest Russian airline on the
international scene as well as its successful
expansion in the world market, primarily in
the Europe-Asia transit. Recognition of our
brand as the strongest one testifies to the
success, sustainable development and great
potential for development of the multi-brand
model of the Aeroflot Group, of which Aeroflot
is the flagship.
Over the past five years, Aeroflot airlines
has been focused on its customers: it has
upgraded its aviation fleet, invested in
personnel training. This was reflected
in the high Skytrax rating and customer
loyalty. Do these factors affect the
increase in passenger traffic/flow in
Kazakhstan?
Aeroflot began its flights to Kazakhstan in
the fall of 2015, performing 33 flights a week
from Almaty, Astana, Atyrau, Aktau, Aktobe,
Karaganda and Shymkent. In 2016, we have
performed 4,503 flights and carried 514,796
passengers from Kazakhstan, showing an
increase of 253% in terms of the number of
flights and increase by 321% in the number
of passengers, compared to the previous
year. In 2017, we have increased the number
of weekly flights to 51, and we can already
talk about the increase in the number of
flights by 55%. The steady growth of these
indicators is due to the world-recognized
reputation of the airline, as well as the great
work done in the Kazakhstan market to