Türkiye’s aviation sector experienced robust activity during the first seven months of the year, with airports across the nation serving nearly 139 million passengers. Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu highlighted this achievement on Sunday, noting that the total passenger volume surpasses the combined population of 18 European Union member states.
In July alone, the country's environmentally friendly airports managed a total air traffic of 249,520, a figure that includes domestic routes, international routes, and overflights. Specifically, July saw 98,158 aircraft landings and departures on domestic routes and 101,160 on international routes. Passenger traffic for the month reached 26.80 million, consisting of 10.48 million domestic travelers and 16.31 million international passengers, a figure that includes direct transit travelers.
The cumulative data for the January-July period shows that aircraft traffic at Türkiye’s airports reached 1.36 million, including 570,028 domestic and 505,357 international flights. Cargo operations also maintained significant volume, totaling 3.03 million tonnes during these seven months. This included 542,898 tonnes on domestic routes and 2.485 million tonnes on international routes. For July specifically, cargo traffic amounted to 527,744 tonnes, with 102,018 tonnes domestic and 425,726 tonnes international.
Istanbul Airport continued to serve as a primary hub, recording 50,748 aircraft movements in July, comprising 12,190 domestic and 38,558 international flights. The airport served 8.15 million passengers that month, including 1.816 million domestic and 6.33 million international travelers. From January through July, Istanbul Airport recorded 313,019 aircraft movements and handled 48.07 million passengers, which included 10.05 million domestic and 38.02 million international passengers.
Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen Airport also reported strong figures, with 25,355 aircraft movements in July, including 11,301 domestic and 14,054 international flights. The airport served 4.49 million passengers in July, split between 2.08 million domestic and 2.41 million international travelers. During the first seven months of the year, Sabiha Gokcen handled 160,890 aircraft movements and served 28.01 million passengers, including 12.93 million domestic and 15.08 million international passengers. Additionally, Istanbul Ataturk Airport recorded 2,444 aircraft movements in July and 15,309 movements during the seven-month period.
Airports serving Türkiye’s major tourism destinations also saw significant traffic, handling a combined 32.10 million passengers and 219,278 aircraft movements between January and July. This tourism-focused traffic included 11.65 million domestic and 20.54 million international passengers, with 88,718 domestic and 130,560 international flights. Specifically, Antalya Airport served 19,209,979 passengers, Izmir Adnan Menderes Airport served 7,406,646, and Mugla Dalaman Airport served 2.7 million passengers. Furthermore, Mugla Milas-Bodrum Airport recorded 2.3 million passengers, while Gazipasa-Alanya Airport handled a total of 484,511 passengers during the seven-month period.
