1 billion & counting: Turkish Airlines hits huge passenger milestone at Istanbul’s new airport

The flag carrier of Türkiye is celebrating an incredible milestone this week. Turkish Airlines, which marks its 90th birthday this year, carried its one billionth passenger from Istanbul Airport to Adıyaman Airport. The airline is known for flying to most countries of any airline worldwide and began with just five aircraft in 1933. As of this month, Turkish Airlines has 342 destinations in its flight network and intends to grow its passenger network to 400 destinations by 2033, supported by a fleet of 800 aircraft. Today the airline announced its next objective is to fly its two billionth passenger in 2031, only eight years from now. In celebration of flying its one billionth passengers, the airline hosted a special ceremony at its hub of Istanbul Airport. The billionth passenger, Mustafa Balcı, arrived on a flight from Adıyaman in the country's southeast. An Airbus A321 generally operates the 924km (574 miles) journey and takes just under an hour and a half to complete the flight. Upon arrival, the passenger was greeted at the gate with the special ceremony and gifted one million miles. <br/>