More than 1.1 million flights, including some 237,919 transit overflights, have used Turkish airspace in the first six months of the year, according to a report on Thursday citing data from the State Airports Authority General Directorate (DHMI).
An aircraft crossed Turkish airspace every 14 seconds during the January-June period as passenger traffic continued to grow, a report by Anadolu Agency (AA) said.
Domestic flight traffic totaled 471,870, while international flight traffic reached 404,197 in the first half of 2026.
Türkiye served 112 million passengers on domestic and international flights during the period, up from 34.5 million passengers in 2002.
Since 2002, the number of countries with which Türkiye has air transport agreements has increased from 81 to 175, while the number of countries served by international flights has risen from 50 to 175. International destinations have expanded from 60 to 356.
Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu said the number of active airports had increased from 26 in 2002 to 58, with Yozgat and Bayburt-Gümüşhane airports expected to raise the total to 60.
“We will reopen the Aydın Çıldır Airport for commercial flights, while Etimesgut Airport began operations during the NATO Ankara summit. The air hub in the capital will be used both as a protocol and a backup airport,” Uraloğlu said.
“We will also build our third airport near the sea in Trabzon,” he added.
Uraloğlu said aviation investments over the past 22 years had helped Türkiye establish one of the world’s most extensive flight networks.
“Türkiye is at the center of 67 countries housing 1.5 billion people with a combined gross domestic product of $51.2 trillion, all within a four-hour flight radius,” he said.
“We will continue to ensure that Türkiye’s civil aviation becomes a rising star worldwide, raise the bar for passenger-focused services, and establish the necessary infrastructure through environmentally friendly projects,” Uraloğlu added.
