Aeroflot celebrates 50 years of flying to Turkey

September 18, 2017: One of the oldest airlines in the world, Aeroflot is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its service to Turkey. Aeroflot is celebrating in Istanbul to mark the occasion. The programme includes a presentation on the airline and a seminar for travel and ground handling agents followed by facilitating Aeroflot officials and partners, a musical performance and a retro show of Aeroflot cabin crew uniforms down the years etc.

In 1967 under the Soviet-Turkish intergovernmental agreement on air transport, Aeroflot obtained permissions to fly from the USSR to Istanbul, Ankara and other African countries along with the right to operate direct transit flights through Turkish territory in both directions.

Aeroflot operates three daily flights between Moscow and Istanbul using an Airbus A320. The airline is in the process of increasing flight frequencies on this route.

The Russian passengers to Istanbul have both business and tourist people including a substantial number of flyers using Istanbul as transit to Siberia and the Far East.

Besides Istanbul, Aeroflot operates flights between Moscow and Antalya twice daily using Boeing 737-800 and Airbus A321 aircraft. Despite a challenging environment, Aeroflot is continuing to increase its presence in the Turkish market, as can be seen from the growth of its operational indicators. More than 147,000 passengers flew with Aeroflot from Istanbul and Antalya in the first five months of 2017. Demand for Aeroflot’s Turkey-bound flights is traditionally high, particularly in the summer season when they post a 90-100 percent load factor.