Turkish Airlines carries nearly 33 million passengers in five months

ISTANBUL

Turkish Airlines carried a total of 32.75 million passengers in January-May, a 5.7 percent increase from a year ago.

The international passenger tally rose by 5.3 percent year-on-year in the first five months of 2024, the flag carrier said in a filing with the stock exchange.

Domestic passenger traffic grew 6.4 percent from a year ago to 11.88 million.

The passenger load factor in the January-May period was 80.4 percent, declining from 81.2 percent in the same period of 2023.

On international routes, the passenger load factor fell from 81.2 percent to 80 percent.

The airline boosted its seat capacity by 10.1 percent year-on-year to 93,599, while the number of passenger flights increased 4.6 percent to 209,075.

The company handled 814,600 tons of cargo and mail, pointing to an annual increase of 33.7 percent.

Turkish Airlines flew to 341 destinations as of May, up from 339 destinations a year ago, while it expanded its fleet from 417 airplanes to 456 jets.

In May alone, the number of total passengers the carrier served declined by 1.7 percent year-on-year to 7.3 million, with the passenger load factor falling from 81.9 percent to 79.8 percent.

Last month, international passenger traffic rose by 2.5 percent from May 2023 to 4.57 million.

The domestic passenger tally, however, fell by 8.2 percent year-on-year to 2.68 million.

Turkish Airlines aims to expand its fleet to 813 aircraft and serve 171 million passengers yearly by 2033, as part of its strategic plan.