Japanese carrier ANA starts flights to Istanbul Airport

ISTANBUL

All Nippon Airways (ANA) has commenced direct flights between Tokyo Haneda (HND) and İGA Istanbul Airport.

On the new route, flights will operate three days a week — Monday, Wednesday and Saturday — using Boeing 787-8 aircraft, according to a statement from İGA.

ANA, which has been selected as Japan's best five-star airline for 12 consecutive years, is the 111th airline to have flights to Istanbul Airport.

“These flights will provide our passengers with more connection opportunities, ensuring faster and more efficient access to hubs in Asia and Europe,” said Server Aydın, chief commercial officer at İGA Istanbul Airport.

They aim to increase ANA’s flights to daily frequencies with higher capacity aircraft, Aydın added.

Noting that Istanbul Airport welcomed 80 million passengers in 2024, he said they demonstrated their important position in global aviation.

“We will commence triple parallel runway operation operations in April. This will further elevate İGA İstanbul Airport as a global transfer hub,” Aydın added.

Total passenger traffic at Istanbul Airport increased by 5 percent last year from 2023, with the international passenger tally rising 8 percent to nearly 63 million.

The airport hosted 426,311 commercial flights in 2024, up 4 percent from the previous year.