Türk Hava Yolları (Turkish Airlines)

Turkish Airlines was established on May 20, 1933 by the Turkish Ministry of National Defense — just ten years after the founding of the Turkish Republic. The airline initially operated with a small fleet of Curtiss Kingbirds, Junkers F 13s, and a Tupolev ANT-9, connecting a handful of domestic Turkish cities. For its first two decades, Turkish Airlines was essentially a tool of national infrastructure rather than a commercial enterprise, connecting Turkish cities that were otherwise difficult to reach by surface transport. International services began in 1947, with the first flights to Athens, Nicosia, Beirut, and Cairo.

Turkish Airlines's transformation from a modest regional carrier into a global force began in earnest in 1983, when a new Turkish government prioritised the airline's capitalisation and expansion. Airbus A310s joined the fleet in 1985, enabling routes to Singapore (1986) and New York via Brussels (1987). The addition of longer-range aircraft allowed Turkish to begin positioning Istanbul as a connecting hub between Europe and the Middle East, Asia, and Africa — a geographic advantage that would prove decisive in the following decades.

Turkish Airlines joined the Star Alliance on April 1, 2008, gaining access to the network's marketing and interline agreements and establishing Turkish as a credible international carrier in corporate travel markets. The airline's strategy centred explicitly on Istanbul's geography: situated at the intersection of Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, Istanbul Airport could theoretically reach more of the world's population than any other major hub. Turkish began building routes to every continent, establishing itself in obscure markets that Gulf carriers and European airlines ignored as too thin.

Istanbul Airport — a $10 billion project designed specifically to enable Turkish Airlines's growth ambitions — fully opened in April 2019, replacing Atatürk Airport. The new facility was designed with a capacity for 200 million passengers annually when fully built out. Turkish transferred all operations to the new airport in April 2019. Istanbul Airport became the largest airport in Europe by passenger throughput, surpassing Heathrow, Frankfurt, and Charles de Gaulle. Turkish Airlines earned a Guinness World Record in December 2024 for flying to the most countries of any airline — 131.

Turkish Airlines reported $22.7 billion in revenue for 2024, up 8.2%, with a net profit of $3.4 billion. The airline flew to 352 destinations in 131 countries — more countries than any other airline on Earth. The Turkish Cargo division became the world's third-largest air cargo carrier with $3.5 billion in revenue, up 35% year-on-year. The airline's fleet stood at approximately 492 aircraft in late 2024, with a target of 813 aircraft by 2033. Orders placed in 2023 and 2025 committed Turkish to receiving hundreds of Airbus and Boeing aircraft over the following decade, making it one of the fastest-growing airline groups in the world.