US lifts ban on flights to and from Turkey after coup bid

ISTANBUL - Reuters

Turkish Airlines aircraft taxis at Ataturk International Airport in Istanbul, Turkey, June 29, 2016. REUTERS photo

The United States has lifted a ban on flights to and from Turkey following a failed coup in the country, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said on July 18.

The ban, which included both direct flights and those from a third country, went into effect after a faction of Turkey's military attempted to overthrow the Turkish government. The coup crumbled on July 15 as supporters of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan took to the streets in defiance of the coup plotters.

The attempted coup forced airlines to cancel flights. Shares of Turkish Airlines had tumbled 12.6 percent on Monday, logging their biggest one-day drop since 2013.

The FAA said in a statement that it lifted the restrictions at 1:45 p.m. EDT (1745 GMT). CNN Turk had previously reported the news.

In a statement, Turkish Airlines said its flights to the United States would resume on July 19 morning.

The attempted coup followed a series of bombings that have hit Turkey this year, including a suicide attack in June that killed 45 people at Istanbul's main airport. They have weighed on international travel to the country.

As of July 2, international flight bookings to Istanbul for trips in the second half of the year were down 36 percent from a year ago, travel data analysis company ForwardKeys said.