The aircraft is the first of five ordered under a leasing agreement signed with AerCap in 2017, with the remaining four aircraft scheduled for delivery in 2019. The aircraft is also the first E2 to be delivered to an airline in the CIS. The new generation Embraer E190-E2 aircraft will replace older Embraer E190s in the fleet, which have operated with Air Astana since 2011. All aircraft delivered directly from the manufacturer’s factory in Brazil.

The new aircraft features a special Snow Leopard livery, which is intended to draw global attention to the threat of extinction faced by this large wild cat, which is a native to the mountain ranges of southern Kazakhstan. Air Astana has also donated US$10,000 to Kazakhstan’s Zoology Association, which is taking urgent action to protect the diminishing numbers of Snow Leopards in the country.

“All of us at Air Astana are pleased to receive our first E190-E2, and we look forward to a smooth entry into service and a simple transition for our pilots. We know Embraer's E-Jets well, and have high expectations for their new generation aircraft in terms of economics, environmental impact, and levels of comfort and convenience for our customers,” said Peter Foster, President and CEO of Air Astana.

“We are honored to deliver new generation jets to Kazakhstan by delivering this “wildcat” to our good friends at Air Astana”, said John Slattery, President and CEO, Embraer Commercial Aviation. “For a manufacturer, there is no better reward than to see a customer’s business continuously growing with our products. Air Astana’s decision to embrace the E2 program is a further measure of trust in Embraer and in the E-Jets family of commercial aircraft.”

Air Astana will operate the Embraer 190-E2 on domestic services across Kazakhstan, as well as to destinations in Russia, Central Asia, the Caucasus and China. The inaugural E2 commercial service from Astana to Almaty in scheduled for the 19th December 2018.