Sabena Boeing 747s with four-engined Airbus A340. After the liberalisation of the airline industry throughout Europe and the economic consequences of the Gulf War, the Belgian government, the main shareholder of the company, realized that Sabena had little chance of surviving on its own in this very competitive market, and began searching for a suitable partner. Sabena remained in a poor financial state, and year after year the Belgian government had to cover losses, however, it was however prevented from providing new funds due to EU State Aid rules. Around 1987, SAS tried to merge with the carrier, but the merger
Kazakhstan Airlines Kazakhstan. There were another four accidents resulting in an aircraft of Kazakhstan Airlines being written-off, none of which resulted in any reported fatalities: Kazakhstan Airlines Kazakhstan Airlines was an airline from Kazakhstan, serving as national flag carrier of the country from its independence in 1991 until 1996, when this role was transferred to Air Kazakhstan following the disaster of Flight 1907. The Dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 also affected its state-owned airline, Aeroflot. The Kazakh division (which can be traced back to the mid-1920s) was transformed into Kazakhstan Airlines, with scheduled flights from its base at Almaty International