Istanbul Airport again maintained its top spot as the busiest air hub in Europe, having an average of 1,352 daily flights between Dec. 2 and Dec. 8, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu said in a written statement on Sunday.
Like this, the mega airport in Türkiye's largest city, which recently celebrated six years since the start of operations, left behind airports in many European capitals.
In his written statement, Uraloğlu evaluated the European Aviation Outlook Report of the European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation (Eurocontrol) from Dec. 2 to Dec. 8.
Eurocontrol, a pan-European civil-military organization focusing on European aviation, publishes weekly reports that evaluate air traffic, the performance of airlines, flight delays and average jet fuel prices, among others.
Reiterating that according to the report, Istanbul Airport is the busiest airport in Europe, with an average of 1,352 daily flights, Uraloğlu noted: "Our Istanbul Airport maintained its top spot, leaving behind airports in European capitals such as London, Amsterdam and Paris. Our Sabiha Gökçen Airport ranked 10th on the same list, averaging 662 daily flights."
The data from Eurocontrol revealed that flights at Istanbul Airport increased by 5% compared to the same period last year, 3% compared to a week earlier, and a notable 23% compared to 2019.
Meanwhile, the number of flights at Sabiha Gökçen Airport jumped by 11% compared to the previous year and 13% compared to 2019, according to the data.
Uraloğlu, on the other hand, also informed that Türkiye ranked sixth among the countries with the busiest traffic volume in Europe, with an average of 2,511 daily flights.
Emphasizing the success of flight density, the minister also touched upon flight delay times. "When we examine the Eurocontrol airspace flight delay times, our Turkish airspace became one of the most efficient airspaces in Europe with a delay time of just under 0.5 minutes per flight," he said.
