Türkiye's top air hubs have recently renewed the records for the number of passengers hosted in a single day, according to a top official on Monday.
Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu announced on Monday that Istanbul and Antalya airports, which he said have the highest passenger capacities in Türkiye, hosted record-breaking passenger traffic.
“On July 26, Antalya Airport broke the record for the highest number of passengers served in a single day, with 225,118 passengers. On July 27, Istanbul Airport reached an all-time daily high with 272,132 passenger movements," Uraloğlu said in a written statement.
Providing information on the passenger numbers in Antalya on the stated date, he said that the airport welcomed some 203,348 passengers on international flights and 21,770 on domestic flights. Like this, he said, it surpassed the previous record of 223,217 passengers set on Aug. 3 last year.
He also stated that on the same day, Antalya Airport saw 1,074 international and 143 domestic flights.
“With a total of 1,217 flights, last year’s record level in aircraft traffic was also matched," he added.
Moreover, Uraloğlu stated that the number of passengers recorded at Istanbul Airport on July 27, 2025, marked a historic milestone for the air hub.
“With 272,132 passenger movements on July 27, 2025, our airport reached the highest daily passenger number of all time. This also became the highest number of passengers handled by a European airport in a single day,” he said.
Istanbul Airport was Europe's second-busiest airport last year and began simultaneous triple runway operations this April.
With this infrastructure, it became the first in Europe to have three runways and the second in the world, after the U.S.
The airport handled approximately 80 million passengers in 2024, making it Europe's largest and second-busiest airport, according to the General Directorate of State Airports (DHMI).
It also became Europe's busiest air cargo hub last year, according to the Airports Council International (ACI) Europe's 2024 Annual Traffic Report.
According to weekly data from the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation (Eurocontrol), Istanbul Airport frequently topped the list in Europe in terms of daily flights.
Antalya Airport, on the other hand, also expanded with the opening of new terminal facilities earlier this year, which are expected to help further lift the number of passengers served at this air hub in a popular tourist resort.
