Air Astana first Kazakh carrier to carry out 12-year check
November 8, 2024
Air Astana has become the first airline in Kazakhstan to carry out a 12-year maintenance check, completing the operation on one of its Airbus A321 aircraft.
This achievement marks a significant milestone in the airline’s maintenance capabilities, following approval from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) to perform these comprehensive checks on Airbus A320/A321 models.
The 12-year check involves a detailed, in-depth inspection of the entire aircraft. For this maintenance process, the A321 was systematically disassembled for a full structural review, including checks inside the fuel tanks.
Non-destructive testing techniques were employed to inspect various components without causing any damage. Additionally, the engines were removed for a close inspection of the attachment points and supporting structures.
Once all inspections were completed, the aircraft was reassembled and underwent rigorous system testing, from flight controls to in-flight entertainment.
A maintenance check flight was conducted to ensure the aircraft was fully operational before returning it to passenger service.
The A321 has been part of Air Astana’s fleet since 2012, and another 12-year check is planned by the end of this year. Since performing its first 1C-check in 2019, Air Astana has expanded its in-house maintenance capabilities, completing a total of 32 C-checks, including 2C and 6-Year C-checks introduced in recent years.
“Our successful completion of the first heavy maintenance 12-Year C-check on an Airbus A321 serves to confirm the sophisticated and growing capability of Air Astana’s engineering resource and staff,” said Robert Dando, director Astana Technical Centre and C-Check maintenance.
“The ongoing commitment to develop in-house maintenance strength has significantly reduced costs previously incurred when heavy maintenance tasks were undertaken outside Kazakhstan.”
