Air Astana and China Southern Airlines Sign Strategic Cooperation Agreement

Kazakhstan-based Air Astana and China Southern Airlines, one of China’s leading carriers, have signed a strategic cooperation agreement aimed at strengthening air connectivity between the two countries. The agreement will expand the airlines’ existing codeshare partnership.

Under the agreement, the two carriers will coordinate flight schedules, expand their joint route networks and undertake joint marketing activities. The partnership aims to offer passengers more destination options, improved connecting flights and more consistent service conditions across both airlines.

Kazakhstan’s Vice Minister of Transport, Talgat Lastayev, announced that the number of flights between Kazakhstan and China has increased by 52% compared with the same period in 2025. He stated that the two countries currently have 117 scheduled weekly flights across 21 routes, with more than one million passengers transported since the beginning of 2026. Plans are also underway to increase the number of routes to 30.

During the peak season, Air Astana operates 36 weekly flights from Astana and Almaty to Urumqi, Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai. Meanwhile, China Southern Airlines operates 29 weekly flights from Urumqi, Beijing, Guangzhou and Xi’an to Almaty and Astana.

The agreement is expected to support passenger traffic growth between Kazakhstan and China, improve connecting travel options between Europe and Asia, and enable both airlines to make more efficient use of their international route networks.