Sea airliner brings Bursa to Istanbul’s Golden Horn

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Bursa Metropolitan Municipality organizes a press tour to present the seaplanes that will fly between Istanbul and industrial city Bursa. DAILY NEWS photo, Emrah GÜREL

A seaplane flight that will link Istanbul to Turkey’s northwestern industrial province of Bursa will begin on April 1.

With the flights organized by the Bursa Metropolitan Municipality, the travel time between the two cities will fall to 18 minutes as of April 1.

“Istanbul is a great opportunity for Turkey, with its population of 14 million. We plan to promote Bursa as a city where Istanbul people can rest,” Bursa Mayor Recep Altepe said during a press conference held at Haliç port in Istanbul to promote the seaplane flights.

The seaplanes, which have a capacity of 19 passengers each, will arrive at the Gemlik port of Bursa 18 minutes after leaving Istanbul.

“We know the value of time and therefore making distances closer between the financial hub of Istanbul and Bursa is very meaningful for us,” the mayor said.

Seaplane flights will take place six days a week except Tuesdays as two round trips. The planes will depart at

8:30 a.m. and 6 p.m from Haliç and at 9:15 a.m. and 6:45 p.m. from Gemlik. Altepe also added that the number of flights would increase if there was higher demand.

Bursa is the heart of the automotive and textile manufacturing sectors in Turkey.