Turkey's largest technology and aerospace fair Teknofest Istanbul welcomed over 250,000 visitors in the first two days, the head of the organizer foundation said yesterday.

The rate of participation in the event, which hosted around 550,000 visitors last year, is higher this year, said Selçuk Bayraktar, the chairman of the Turkish Technology Team (T3) Foundation. "While the event was visited by people from 60 countries last year, this year people came from 122 countries," he noted.

The event, which will end on Sunday, is expected to be attended by approximately 1 million domestic and international visitors.

Mehmet Fatih Kacır, Turkey's deputy industry and technology minister, said Teknofest is important to access skilled youth.

He said that competitors in the event are monitored closely, their success will be turned into enterprises and they will have a role in research and development (R&D) teams of Turkey's largest companies. Istanbul's Atatürk Airport is hosting the six-day festival, co-organized by the T3 Foundation and the Industry and Technology Ministry.

The festival will host numerous activities such as aviation shows, seminars, workshops, drone championship, contests and concerts.