Turkish Airlines capitalises on its strategic location
Temel Kotil, deputy chairman and CEO, Turkish Airlines, says its Istanbul hub, being at the crossroads of the East and the West, works as a major differentiator that gives the airline a competitive edge.
How would you like to position yourself in this region?
We would like to be known for the fact that at Turkish Airlines we connect you to more countries than any other airline in the world. Moreover, we are competitively priced and come with exceptional service, including but not limited to our fabulous onboard catering. Our hub in Istanbul, at the crossroads of the East and the West, is a major differentiator.
To what do you attribute your company’s consistent growth?
We believe our growth is due to our wide network, which connects travellers to 110 countries across the world. We are eyeing the United States, Europe and Africa for expansion, with plans to increase frequencies of flights to various destinations and add new routes.
Turkish Airlines is backing future plans with an increase in its aircraft fleet to reach 300 by the end of 2015, and over 400 aircraft by 2020. Talk us through your expansion strategy?
We aim to almost double our aircraft fleet and hit USD24 billion (QAR87 billion) in revenues by 2023. We have geography on our side; with one foot in Europe and the other in the Middle East, our hub in Istanbul could not be more strategically located, and this is a huge driver of growth. We plan to capitalise on this, especially with the planned opening of Istanbul’s new airport soon. With USD35 billion (QAR127 billion) in investments, the new airport will have six runways, 500 aircraft parking spots and the capacity to accommodate 150 million passengers.
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