Turkish Airlines said it carried 83.4 million passengers, both domestic and international, in 2023, attributing the new milestone to faster capacity increases, strengthened agility, expansion of flight network, and a highly qualified workforce.
The airline increased its domestic passenger capacity by 23.5 per cent compared to 2022, with the number surpassing 30 million.
On international routes, its capacity grew by 16 per cent, and it carried 53 million passengers, an increase of 14 per cent.
Notably, the number of passengers in the European countries with significant Turkish populations climbed by more than 20 per cent year-over-year.
While global international airline capacity lagged 12 per cent behind the 2019 figures in 2023, as reported by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Turkish Airlines set itself apart from the industry by exceeding its 2019 international capacity by 27 per cent.
Moreover, as a result of its investments in aviation infrastructure, Istanbul Airport emerged as the leading European airport in terms of daily number of flights.
Aiming to expand its fleet to 800 aircraft by 2033 as part of its 100th Anniversary Strategy, Turkish Airlines increased its number of aircraft by 12% to 440 in 2023, despite global challenges in aircraft procurement and bottlenecks in the aircraft production.
It is targeting an increase of over $50 billion in revenues, and carry over 170 million passengers in its 100th Anniversary.