Istanbul Airport aims to serve 85 mln passengers this year

ISTANBUL

Istanbul’s mega airport aims to increase the number of passengers it serves from 76 million last year to 85 million in 2024, while boosting its investments to 657 million euros.

The biggest chunk of the investment will go to the construction of new runways, said Selahattin Bilgen, acting chief executive officer of İGA Istanbul, adding that they allocated more than 330 million euros for those two runways.

They expect a 15 percent increase in flight traffic at the airport to around 540,000 in 2024, he said.

The airport increased its airline roster to 101 in 2024. “Our target is to lure 11 more airlines to Istanbul Airport this year,” Bilgen said at a press conference where he unveiled the company’s plans and targets for 2024.

“As of today, Istanbul Airport has connections to 315 destinations, which makes us the top airport in the world.”

The company’s investments exceeded 160 million euros last year, he said, adding that investment will gather pace in 2024 to reach 656.5 million euros in 2024.

They will invest some 35 million euros in the general aviation terminal, while they will spend 146.4 million on a solar power plant in the Central Anatolian province of Eskişehir, which will be completed by the end of 2024, according to Bilgen.

Another 25.6 million will be invested in Hilton Istanbul Airport this year, he said.

In 2022, the airport welcomed a total of 64.5 million passengers, including 48.6 million international and around 16 million domestic travelers.

The number of international passengers rose 20 percent last year compared to 2022 to 58.2 million, while the domestic passenger tally increased 13 percent to 18 million people.