Turkish Airlines, a Star Alliance group member, has become a powerful player in the airline industry. Of the total 171 routes they fly, 41 are domestic with the remaining 130 being to international destinations. Flying out of their primary base at Ataturk International Airport, their ports of call span the globe from Europe to Africa, Asia and North and South America. They have seen a steady rise in revenue as well as number of passengers over the past four years. The company made 2.2 billion USD in 2006, flying about 17 million passengers. 2009 was a terrific year in which their passenger total was up to just over 25 million with total revenue of 4 billion USD.
There seems to be an increase in passenger flow especially among expatriates. Once they pick good reliable moving service to relocate, then their next move is to estimate relocation costs, and select Turkish Airlines as their carrier of choice.
October of 2010 saw the announcement that Turkish Airlines will continue to expand their reach during 2011. Quite naturally, for an airline that is growing so rapidly, this is fantastic news. The Turkish Ministry of Transport released the news of eleven new destinations this year. There will be four new flights going to Shiraz, Iran starting in the middle of March. As for the US, in early March we’ll see four weekly flights to Los Angeles, California. This is wonderful for going to the United States west coast. Additional countries include China, Greece, Spain, France and three destinations in Italy. October 2010 was very busy for Turkey’s number one airline. The airline flew the first Boeing 777-300ER which is an extended range aircraft. The airline giant has placed a Boeing order for 12 of the modern 777-300ER extended range aircraft. Actually, Turkish Airlines makes no secret of their plans to battle their way into the competitive turf of the US and Asia. They have long term and consistent plans to continue setting up shop all around the world in a very quick manner. Everything about Turkish Airlines suggests that it is taking advantage of the best resources available. This certainly is reflected in their services.
Turkish Airlines rewards programs are encouraging members to upgrade their flight classes as often as possible. Of course that also means even more to be gained by their passengers and customers. Miles & Smiles card holders can switch their tickets up from Economy, Business and Comfort Class. Depending on their tickets, customers can switch to First Class, Business Class and Comfort Class. The price paid for each upgrade is the correct number of miles earned from the rewards program. The closing of the first decade in the new millennium finds Turkish Airlines at an unprecedented level of growth and success. The company has done all of the correct marketing ploys with the right high profile celebrities. They are aggressively pursuing new and expansive market reach which runs in parallel with an international campaign of brand awareness. But they are also seeing feedback from their efforts. They have received many rewards for their global service and marketing. We think that they are a good example of how civilian management and government can work together and get good results.