OVERVIEW: What awaits Air Astana after BAE Systems sells its stakeUK-based defense and aerospace group BAE Systems is completing its exit from Air Astana, Kazakhstan’s largest airline, ending a partnership that dates back to the carrier’s founding in 2001.BAE Systems’ departure from the airline’s shareholder structure had long been anticipated and came as no surprise to analysts surveyed by Interfax-Kazakhstan. However, the move still carries important implications.FINAL SALEWhen the carrier was established nearly 25 years ago, BAE Systems held a 49% stake in Air Astana. Following the airline’s initial public offering in 2024, the British group’s share fell to 16.95%, and by December 2025 it declined further to 6.86%.BAE Systems (Kazakhstan) Limited has now agreed to sell 6,109,982 global depositary receipts (GDRs) in Air Astana, thereby fully divesting its remaining stake. The GDRs will be placed with a limited number of institutional investors at $5.10 per share, according to bookrunner Jefferies.As of January 1, 2026, BAE Systems had already been removed from the list of shareholders on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE) website. According to updated information, the major stakeholders of Air Astana are now Samruk-Kazyna (41%) and Citibank N.A.-NY (37.53%).The airline said that within BAE Systems’ global portfolio – spanning defense, aerospace and cybersecurity – Air Astana was no longer a core asset. It also welcomed the entry of new shareholders.The exit also coincides with the departure of long-serving CEO Peter Foster, who will step down at the end of March. He will be succeeded in April by Chief Financial Officer Ibrahim Zhanlyyel, while Foster will remain as a senior adviser to the board.CURRENT POSITION AND HIGH HOPESBAE Systems leaves Air Astana amid weakening financial performance. In 2025, the airline’s net profit dropped by over 70% to $13.6 million, hit by issues with Pratt & Whitney engines – the company removed 22 P&W engines last year due to defects – as well as currency volatility and rising costs. In 2024, net profit had already declined 23.2% to $52.8 million.The airline has also temporarily suspended flights to parts of the Middle East due to the conflict involving Iran and has not operated flights to Russia since 2022. At the same time, Air Astana continues to launch new routes, reallocating capacity freed up by these restrictions.Plans to launch direct flights to the United States have yet to materialize. The company had aimed to begin services in 2025 following the delivery of Boeing 787 Dreamliners. However, due to the closure of Russian airspace, opportunities to open U.S. routes remain limited, CEO Peter Foster previously said.The airline has also signed a contract for the delivery of 25 Airbus A320neo family aircraft between 2031 and 2034 and plans to acquire 15 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, with the first four wide-body aircraft expected in the fourth quarter of 2026. (ICE ALMATY)

Fonte notizia: INTERFAX