Air Astana completes 1st C-check on Airbus A321neo

Air Astana has successfully completed its first six-year C-Check at its engineering and technical center in Astana. The work on an Airbus A321 took more than 20 days and involved 7,800 man-hours undertaken by highly qualified mechanics and engineers holding international certificates and EASA Part 66 licenses, including those trained under Air Astana’s aviation technician training program. The airline received the license for this type of work earlier this year, following an international EASA audit.

Air Astana became the first airline in Kazakhstan that is able to independently perform heavy maintenance C1 and C2 checks on Airbus family aircraft at its engineering bases in Almaty and Astana in 2019. Since then, it has serviced 24 aircraft. Eight more Airbus family aircraft in the fleet are due for maintenance in 2024, three of which involve a full six-year C-check.

Temirlan Bagashar, Technical Support Manager, commented: "Carrying out complex repairs in-house allows the airline to establish control over the process of timely maintenance of its aircraft and reduce costs for these types of work, which previously required the involvement of foreign companies and ferrying aircraft abroad to facilities in Europe, Russia and China. Today, our qualifications and professionalism, as well as the equipment base, allow Air Astana to perform quality C-check works within Kazakhstan." 

A six-year C-check is one of the most thorough and comprehensive maintenance procedures, involving the complete disassembly and inspection of every system and component on the aircraft. This type of maintenance is performed every six years to thoroughly assess the condition of the aircraft, check systems, and if needed, perform component replacement work. The fuselage, wings, control systems, electrical systems, landing gear struts, engines, cabin, and other critical components are closely inspected to eliminate possible malfunctions and ensure uninterrupted performance and maintain flight safety.

Air Astana continues to maintain its leadership in being able to undertake six-year C-checks, a deeper and more comprehensive type of maintenance that not only ensures a high level of aircraft reliability and safety, but also highlights the company's commitment to leadership through continuous improvement in maintenance. Air Astana is committed to becoming the largest provider of capital maintenance services for the Airbus family in Central Asia in compliance with international EASA standards.