ISTANBUL AIRPORT SET TO RETURN TO FULL CAPACITY: CEO

AIRPORTS are preparing to relaunch their services after the normalization period was officially launched last week, according to Kadri Samsunlu, General Manager, and Executive President of IGA Airport. Istanbul Airport began its marketing campaign with the launch of a documentary - “A monument of victory: Istanbul Airport” – on its official Youtube channel. Samsunlu described the documentary as the story of how the airport that was completed in 42 months under difficult circumstances.

Istanbul Airport employs a total of 184,000 people and has a projected total capacity of 200 million, though currently it can handle 90 million passengers a year. Its hourly flight capacity is expected to increase to 130 with the opening of the third runway on June 18, Samsunlu says.

Long term projects like the Istanbul Airport are always at risk of interruptions, like pandemics and other natural disasters, Samsunlu said, adding that it is important to keep morale high. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the airport has continued to function. “Before the outbreak, the airport operated a total of 11 airlines,” he said. “•ver 400,000 planes, 64 million passengers, and 50 million pieces of luggage arrived at the airport.” But due to the outbreak, the airport had limited some operations.

The airport will be ready to serve 1,300 planes per day after the outbreak. “We only have three rules: masks, social distancing, and hygiene. Through these measures, we will be able to recover from this crisis.”