OREANDA-NEWS. February 12, 2014. With its fleet of Airbus, Boeing and Embraer aircraft growing rapidly, Air Astana is keen to recruit new engineers and technicians to maintain the fleet. As part of promoting the "Air Astana Career" programme, the airline invited local media on a tour of hangar/ engineering facilities at Almaty Airport and provided information about opportunities on offer.

Journalists had the chance to see the engineers in action and gain a better understanding of the requirements needed to keep aircraft in perfect condition.

Air Astana recruits professionals and takes an active role in the training of technicians. The company needs to invest in the development of its future staff, since there is a shortage of qualified aircraft engineers in Kazakhstan, with a mismatch of graduates to the current requirements in aviation industry. As a result, Air Astana has initiated a programme of educating engineers jointly with the Academy of Civil Aviation in Almaty.

"We already have 18 engineers that have qualified through the joint Academy of Civil Aviation programme, which has drawn together their theoretical knowledge with hands-on practical experience. This programme is proving to be a great success in helping us overcome the shortfall in qualified engineering staff," said Andrew Oliya, Maintenance Manager, Air Astana.