Turkish airline companies fly high, setting ambitious targets

ISTANBUL - Reuters

THY CEO Temel Kotil also announced Nov. 11 a number ambitious goals, including establishing another permanent fleet in Istanbul. DHA Photo

Turkey’s national carrier Turkish Airlines (THY) and low-cost carrier Pegasus have posted higher-than-expected net profits in the third quarter of the year, due to a rise in passenger numbers and lower oil prices, as they set ambitious goals for the coming years. Analysts expect an increase in the companies’ net profits during the fourth quarter, as they will be benefiting from the decrease in oil prices.

THY CEO Temel Kotil also announced Nov. 11 a number ambitious goals, including establishing another permanent fleet in Istanbul.

“We will establish a permanent fleet in the Sabiha Gökçen Airport of Istanbul,” he said at a press meeting yesterday, adding that the company’s main hub will be the third airport after it is opened in 2017 with an initial 90 million passenger capacity.”

“We’ll be transferring our 100 airplanes to the Sabiha Gökçen from our main base in the third airport, which will still have 300 THY airplanes,” he noted.

THY’s third-quarter net profit almost doubled compared with the same period from last year. The carrier reported a net profit of 1.37 billion Turkish Liras ($607 million), up from 705.1 million liras a year earlier and an above average forecast of 1.16 billion liras in a Reuters poll of analysts. Sales rose to 7.17 billion liras in the quarter, the company said in a statement to the Public Disclosure Platform (KAP) late Nov. 10. That was a 26 percent rise from a year earlier, and beat the poll forecast of 6.89 billion liras. In the first nine months of the year, the airline’s passenger numbers rose 14 percent to 41.4 million passengers, it said in an e-mailed statement. Pegasus posted a net profit of 250.6 million liras ($110.4 million) in the third quarter of the year with a 118 percent of increase from the same period of the previous year, above an average forecast of 222 million liras from a Reuters poll.

The company’s income from its sales increased up to 1.11 billion liras in the first nine months of the year by a 33 percent of increase from the same period of the year before. The number of passengers traveling with Pegasus rose to 15.02 million in the first nine months of this year, a 19.4 percent of increase from the same period of the previous year, the company said in a written statement on Oct. 31.

“We cannot maintain 10 percent more growths unless we move some of our flights to the Sabiha Gökçen Airport,” said Kotil, adding that they aimed at making as many flights as possible to each part of Turkey and Europe in the coming period.

“We will also establish a network in the Middle East and Central Asia. We have long term growth plans through the Sabiha Gökçen Airport,” he said.

The planned third airport of Istanbul will be the world’s third largest airport by 2021, after the airports in Bejing and Jakarta, Kotil said.

“The airport will have the potential to reach 200 million passengers by 2030,” he said.