Turkish Airlines touts B777-200F as only freighter type
22.08.2023 – 06:05 UTC
Turkish Airlines (TK, Istanbul Airport) is planning to harmonise its dedicated freighter fleet around the B777-200F type, Chief Financial Officer Murat Seker told Aviation Week.
The ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows that the airline’s cargo fleet, operated under the mainline AOC, comprises ten A330-200Fs and eight B777-200Fs. It also wet-leases one A310-300(F) from ULS Airlines Cargo (GO, Istanbul Airport), two A330-200Fs from CMA CGM Air Cargo (2C, Paris CDG), and one B747-400(BDSF) from AirACT (9T, Istanbul Atatürk).
Seker said Turkish Airlines has no interest in the B777-8F.
The carrier remains strategically committed to the freight sector despite the current global slowdown. Turkish Airlines’ cargo revenues dropped 44% in the second quarter of 2023, compared to the second quarter of 2022, while their share in the company’s total revenues decreased from 26.9% to 12.5%.
“This is mainly due to the global oversupply pressures and lasting impact of the earthquakes on our operations [as cargo capacity was moved to humanitarian relief]… The increased…
MIAT Mongolian Airlines eyes oneworld connect membership
21.08.2023 – 22:19 UTC
Saying he wants to get “beyond codeshares,” the CEO of MIAT – Mongolian Airlines (OM, Ulaanbaatar) has told CNN that the airline wants to join the Oneworld connect program.
Munkhtamir Batbayar said the limited domestic market and small fleet size made partnerships and alliances the MIAT’s best avenue for growth. The airline’s key existing partner airlines are oneworld members JAL – Japan Airlines and Cathay Pacific. It also has existing codeshare and marketing agreements with Korean Air and Turkish Airlines.
“We are actively pursuing to get into the oneworld connect program,” Batbayar said. The connect program allows airlines to provide selected alliance benefits. Program airlines need a fully-fledged oneworld member to sponsor them. The single existing connect member, Fiji Airways, is sponsored by Qantas, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, and American Airlines. Batbayar is counting on the support and sponsorship of his two existing oneworld partners but says how his strategy pans out largely depends on them.
“It depends on how they are going to do…
India’s IndiGo leaning towards B787s – report
17.08.2023 – 05:10 UTC
IndiGo Airlines (6E, Delhi International) is leaning towards the B787 as it narrows down options for a widebody order, according to a Reuters report. Boeing is reportedly ahead in the race to ink the order for around 25 aircraft, with IndiGo preferring the B787 product over the alternative A330-900N offering.
If correct, the decision would break with IndiGo’s normal fleet acquisition strategy. Except for two B777-300ERs wet-leased from Turkish Airlines (TK, Istanbul Airport), the airline has exclusively operated Airbus narrowbodies and ATR72-600s. However, IndiGo is building up its network, especially its international network, recently launching flights to new markets in Africa, West Asia and Southeast Asia. IndiGo aims to double its capacity by the end of the decade.
Meanwhile, IndiGo’s majority shareholders, the Gangwal family, have put another equity tranche on the market, reportedly offering 15.6 million shares at a price of INR2,400 Indian rupees (USD28.86) per share. The total value of the transaction is INR37.7 billion (USD453.3 million). Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, and Goldman Sachs…
Türkiye’s AnadoluJet to complete certification by 2Q24
16.08.2023 – 07:49 UTC
Turkish Airlines (TK, Istanbul Airport) aims to complete the certification of AnadoluJet (TK, Ankara Esenboga) by the Summer 2024 season, when the low-cost carrier will begin operating as a separate entity, Chief Financial Officer Murat Seker said during a quarterly earnings call.
The Turkish flag carrier incorporated AJet Hava Taşımacılığı Anonim Şirketi as a new, wholly-owned subsidiary on August 7, 2023. Until now, AnadoluJet was a division of Turkish Airlines with no separate corporate identity. Seker said that the group would announce the branding of the carrier as a stand-alone firm in the coming months. Turkish Airlines’ quarterly investor presentation included AnadoluJet’s existing logo.
AnadoluJet will apply for its own Air Operator’s Certificate and Operating Licence shortly.
Even though the division already operates 69 aircraft and has its own staff, certification would nonetheless involve drawing up new procedures and manuals.
Turkish Airlines is betting heavily on AnadoluJet, a carrier targeting budget-conscious passengers and ethnic traffic, as an engine for regional growth. It plans to increase the division’s fleet to 88 aircraft…
