Turkish Airlines said it had fired 211 employees over suspected links to US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen and behaviour "conflicting with the interest of our country" in the wake of last week's coup. The carrier said their contracts were terminated due to "the non-fulfilment of performance criteria and in line with the necessary actions we are taking against the FETO structure, attitudes and behaviour conflicting with the interest of our country and company". A purge since the coup has targeted more than 60,000 people, drawing fire from the EU. The arrests or suspensions of soldiers, police, judges and civil servants in response to the July 15-16 putsch have raised concerns among rights groups and Western countries, who fear president Tayyip Erdogan is capitalising on it to tighten his grip on power. <br/>
star
THAI aims to resume flights to the US, though they would be routed through either Seattle or San Francisco instead of Los Angeles, which was the previous destination. THAI president Charamporn Jotikasthira said the timing of the move to resume flights to the US depends on the ICAO withdrawing its "red flag", and the US FAA upgrading the country's aviation status. THAI suspended its flights from Bangkok to Los Angeles in October last year in line with its rehabilitation plan following years of losses. With increasing demand, the carrier is now considering flights to either Seattle or San Francisco because passengers could transfer to other destinations, Charamporn said, adding the flights are expected to be launched next year. Thailand was downgraded by the FAA Dec 1 last year to Category II. <br/>
Air India may have improved its financial performance on the back of low fuel prices, but the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) doesn't seem convinced about the carrier's revival story. The PMO has asked the airline to improve its performance on all fronts. It wants on-time performance improved to at least 85%, revenues increased by 10% and industry standards met on load factor, and has also asked the airline to carry out a proper survey before inducting new aircraft. Air India is set to report an operational profit for FY16, helped by INR27b of savings on account of lower fuel prices and a one-time gain of INR12b from the sale and lease back of Boeing 787 Dreamliners. But its revenue for the year is estimated to have increased only marginally even after accounting for the proceeds from the aircraft sale. <br/>