OREANDA-NEWS. November 3, 2010. Air Astana will start serving the United Arab Emirates with flights to Abu Dhabi, the capital of the country instead of Dubai, the press service of the national carrier informs.

“The flights to Abu Dhabi will be operated on daily basis from Almaty and four times a week from Astana by Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft at the same times previously announced for departures to and from Dubai. The expected travel time from Abu Dhabi Airport to the center of Dubai by ground transport vehicle is just 1 hour.”

The report noted that “the change of operating airport in UAE has happened for reasons beyond the airline’s control due to restrictions imposed by Civil Aviation authorities of Dubai.

n the interests of its passengers the National Carrier will do its best to make the transfer of flights from Dubai to Abu Dhabi as comfortable as possible. Air Astana has made arrangements for its passengers already booked to Dubai and will provide transportation between Abu Dhabi and the city center of Dubai as well as the airport of Dubai, and will be assisting transit passengers to make their connections to their final destinations.

The airport of Abu Dhabi serves 39 international airlines offering connections to over 120 destinations. The airport, designed to serve 12 million passengers per year and expected to extend to 20 million passengers by 2015, welcomed 9.7 million passengers in 2009 and is one of the fastest growing airports in the Middle East.