Air Astana has relaunched its onboard safety video for passengers flying across its network. Important safety information is interwoven with stunning landscape scenery and images of Kazakhstan's rich cultural heritage to produce an eye-catching new pre-flight video presentation.
Your attention, please...
On the eve of Nauryz, Kazakhstan's traditional spring holiday, Almaty-based Air Astana has launched a new pre-flight safety video to be shown on services across its network. The new video presentation cleverly interweaves essential safety information with imagery of Kazakhstan's rich cultural heritage and traditions alongside stunning aerial footage of the country's eclectic range of landscapes and natural beauty.
According to Air Astana, over one hundred people were involved in the production of the video. Those involved included acclaimed Kazakh composer Emil Dosov who composed the accompanying music soundtrack, and Aisultan Seitov, who directed the video itself.
The latest safety video is intended to be dual-purpose in adopting a new production style for the airline. While aiming to attract greater attention amongst passengers to onboard flight safety rules and procedures, the video is also being used as a showcase - a shop window to increase awareness of Kazakhstan's identity, natural beauty, and culture as a nation.
About the new safety video
The video, which lasts around 4 minutes and 30 seconds, opens with an Air Astana flight attendant wandering around the center of a traditional Kazakh mountain settlement, surrounded by yurt-style accommodations and local villagers, using the seat belt as a tug-of-war rope - a traditional Kazakh pastime.
The video footage then moves on to the Trans-ili mountain range, famous for its winter sports facilities and mountain leisure resorts, well depicted against the backdrop of snow-capped mountains. Cleverly, the flight attendant is now in a mountainside cable car, demonstrating how oxygen masks work to the other passengers.
Some clever use of drone footage then shows many children on the ground skating into position to depict the correct use of the oxygen masks. British Airways was one of the earliest airline users of this production technique, with its iconic 'winking eye' television commercial in the 1980s (albeit shot from a helicopter).
The video then moves on to the Kazakh Kolsay Lakes, where our flight attendant demonstrates the use of the safety vest to be used in the event of a water landing. She sits in a small wooden boat with a traditional Kazakh fisherman this time. Other scenes whisk the viewer through several aspects of traditional Kazakh culture and history before we end up on the iconic Atyrau Bridge in central Astana, the bustling capital city of Kazakhstan itself.
Lastly, perhaps to inject a touch of humor into the video's conclusion, the viewer's journey ends watching a pair of cosmonauts launching from the famous Baikonur Cosmodrome in southern Kazakhstan. Our Air Astana flight attendant reminds the pair to turn off their mobile phones before they blast off.
The video is sprinkled with footage shot onboard Air Astana aircraft, with passengers carrying out the flight attendant's instructions within an actual Air Astana aircraft cabin for context.
Dual-purpose safety video
Air Astana has tried to achieve a dual purpose by relaunching its new onboard video. While many passengers may already be aware of safety procedures onboard commercial aircraft, perhaps fewer passengers will be mindful of the stunning landscapes and visual wonders that Kazakhstan offers visitors. It also highlights the country's bountiful cultural heritage that passengers may be unaware of.
Announcing the launch of the new safety video, Yelena Obukhova, Vice President of In-flight Services at Air Astana, said,
"The magnificent nature, culture, and traditions of Kazakhstan have inspired the concept of the new Air Astana safety video. During the video, passengers will not only learn about safety rules, but also enjoy viewing the landmarks of our country and hopefully be inspired to explore the unique character of Kazakhstan in person".
Safety videos continue to develop
Airlines have been working on ways to entice their passengers to engage and watch their pre-flight safety videos for many years. From videos featuring sporting legends and promoting indigenous cultures to those brought to passengers by Eurovision Song Contest acts, nothing seems to be off-limits for airline safety videos of the modern age.
While Air Astana might have stuck with a more conservative approach to its latest production, the airline's new safety video certainly covers a lot of distance in its four minutes duration. Indeed, it presents stunning imagery of a country that many Simple Flying readers are likely unaware of beforehand.
What do you think about Air Astana's new pre-flight safety video? Would it entice you to take your next vacation in Kazakhstan? Do let us know your thoughts in the comments.