Turkish Airlines’ success becomes case study at Harvard

NEW YORK – Anadolu Agency

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The success of Turkish Airlines, the country’s national flag carrier, has become a case study at Harvard Business School (HBS), one of the world’s most prestigious institutions.

The case study called “Turkish Airlines: Widen Your World” explored the company’s transformation from a regional actor to a global powerhouse in the international aviation industry and discussed its fast and profitable growth in the sector. 

“Forecasts for the sector predict approximately 7 percent passenger and capacity growth in 2016. Turkish Airlines plans to achieve 21 percent capacity and 18 percent passenger growth in 2016,” said the case study, authored by HBS faculty member Prof. Juan Alcacer and HBS Istanbul Research Center Executive Director Esel Cekin.   

“Anticipated passenger traffic passing through Istanbul from Europe to the Middle East and Asia and from North America to the Middle East will triple in the next 20 years. Given this potential, Turkish Airlines expects to continue to grow over that period,” it added.

Turkish Airlines deputy chair and CEO Dr. Temel Kotil visited HBS in Boston to speak to a class of second year MBA students on Feb. 9.  

“Ten years ago, Turkish Airlines was considered a regional airline. Today, we are one of the industry’s largest carriers serving 287 worldwide destinations to business and leisure travelers. We offer the largest number of countries and international destination choices to our passengers,” he said, according to a HBS statement.   

Kotil, who was named the best CEO in Turkey by Harvard Business Review Turkey, continued: “We went from being a national carrier to a global airline serving 113 countries in a short period of time and I’m truly honored to have had the opportunity to share our success story, our journey, with these brilliant, young minds at Harvard today.”