In preparation for the opening of the Istanbul New Airport
Turkish Airlines (TK) and Munich Airport signed a long-term consulting service contract. As of now, Munich Airport will support the flag carrier of the Republic of Turkey and the hub carrier of the current Istanbul Atatürk Airport in preparing a smooth relocation of its operations to the Istanbul New Airport, scheduled to open on 29th of October, 2018.
Istanbul New Airport is one of the biggest infrastructure projects in Turkey. At present, a private consortium of five Turkish construction companies (IGA) is building Istanbul New Airport on the Black Sea Coast, with an investment worth €10.3 billion and the airport will be constructed over an area of 76.5 million square meters to the north of Istanbul along the Black Sea coast, in 35 km distance to the city center as a bird’s eye view. Also it will be the world’s largest airport as “built from scratch” and will be built as a modern, disability friendly, “green” airport with high recycling and rainwater utilization capacity.
The construction will be carried out in four phases. The first phase is scheduled to be finalized in 2018 with the opening of two runways and a terminal for 90 million passengers. Once complete, the new airport will host flying to more than 350 destinations with an annual passenger capacity up to 200 million.
With 300 international destinations in 120 countries and a fleet size of 328 aircrafts, Turkish Airlines, flies to more countries and also international destinations than any other airline in the world, currently operates the world’s third largest route network. By 2023, TK is planning a fleet expansion up to 500 aircrafts (including cargo aircrafts as well), counting 170 aircraft on order, and the aircrafts whose rental periods are due to come to end by the end of 2023.
Turkish Airlines currently operates 75% of all international flights at the existing Atatürk Airport. Relocating such a big hub carrier requires comprehensive strategic planning and close coordination with all stakeholders, partners and authorities. “We are very pleased to support the largest operational readiness and transfer (ORAT) project in aviation history with our meanwhile 25-years of ORAT expertise from more than 30 projects. Our sincere thanks goes to Turkish Airlines for the trust they have placed in us. We are very proud to be a partner of such a successful, award-winning and ambitious airline”, commented Dr. Ralf Gaffal, Managing Director of Munich Airport International (MAI).
As a wholly owned subsidiary of Munich Airport’s operating company FMG, MAI is responsible for all national and international consultancy, management and training services. The 70 experts at MAI provide full airport lifecycle services, including planning/design, project management, operational readiness and airport transfer (ORAT), operation management, commercial development, process reengineering, profit and revenue optimization, tailor-made training services and comprehensive airport management. Apart from airlines, customers include airports, governments, construction companies and various consultancies.
FMG (Flughafen München GmbH), incorporated in 1949, operates Munich Airport, which opened at its present site on May 17, 1992. It is jointly owned by the Free State of Bavaria (51 percent), the Federal Republic of Germany (26 percent) and the city of Munich (23 percent). The FMG corporate group, with its 15 subsidiaries, employs more than 9,000 people. With a total workforce of about 35,000, employed by about 550 companies, Munich Airport is one of Bavaria’s largest workplaces. Within just a few years of opening, Munich Airport developed into a major air transportation hub and was firmly established as one of Europe’s 10 busiest airports. Munich Airport now offers connections to more than 250 destinations all over the world. In 2016 Bavaria’s gateway to the world has handled approximately 400,000 flights with over 42 million passengers. Bavaria’s gateway to the world became the first – and is so far the only – airport in Europe to be honored with the prestigious title of “5-Star Airport” by the London-based Skytrax Institute.