While Turkish Airlines (THY) carried 29.5 million passengers in the first half of the year, there was also a noteworthy increase in the number of passengers and occupancy rates on flights to the Far East, as THY flights to the region have reached the highest occupancy rate among international flights.

Moreover, 2.2 million passengers traveled to the Far East on THY in the first half of 2016, while that number stood at 2.3 million passengers in the same period of this year, marking an increase of 8.4 percent. The passenger occupancy rate which was about 76 percent in the first half of 2016, was 81.2 percent in the same period of this year, while cargo transport to the Far East also increased.

THY carried 159,55 tons of cargo in the last six months with an increase of 35 percent in Far Eastern routes compared to that of the previous year, which totaled 118,213 tons. THY's flights to 36 cities in 22 Far Eastern countries constituted 22.4 percent of total passenger and cargo revenue, according to figures from the previous year. THY earned $2.1 billion from flights to the Far East in 2016 and the airline carried 169,000 passengers on routes across Central and South America in the first half of the year, an increase of 16.5 percent.

Direct flights to Phuket

THY added another route to its destinations, this time in Southeastern Asia. Direct flights to Phuket Island, Thailand's famous island known for tourism, started yesterday and have already attracted widespread interest among passengers from the U.S., Russia and Europe. With an 87-percent occupancy rate on Bangkok flights, THY will fly to Phuket Island four times a week. THY aims to carry a significant number of passengers to the island, especially passengers from the U.S. and Europe. The airline has already sold many tickets to Phuket from the U.S., Russia and Europe. THY carried 325,000 passengers to Thailand in 2016.