After years of discussion, it seems that Turkish Airlines will begin Australia flights in December. This is according to the carrier’s Chairman, who also disclosed the start date of Detroit flights a few days before the route was officially announced. Of course, its Australia plans could still change between now and being released.
Turkish Airlines to Melbourne
Speaking on the sidelines of this year’s IATA annual general meeting (AGM) in Istanbul, Turkish Airlines’ Chairman Ahmet Bolat said it would begin Istanbul-Melbourne via Singapore in festive December. The route will cover 9,137 miles (14,705 km) each way.
Due to many existing flights by other airlines, Bolat said it will not have fifth freedom traffic rights between Singapore and Melbourne. As such, Changi will be a tech stop to refuel and replace the crew.
Image: GCMap.
Turkish will rely on point-to-point traffic and transfer passengers over its vast and growing Istanbul Airport hub. The P2P market totaled around 26,000 passengers in 2019, while Melbourne-Türkiye had about 60,000.
Aside from the obvious big markets in Western Europe, Turkish Airlines will be well-placed to capture Melbourne traffic to places like Greece and across the Balkans, former Yugoslavian countries, and Central and Eastern Europe. There are many good-sized markets.
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It says it will operate three weekly
Turkish Airlines has served Australia on a codeshare basis for years. Now it will be doing it itself. Bolat commented that Melbourne will start at three weekly using 300-seat Boeing 787-9s.
Like most places worldwide, bilateral air service agreements (ASAs) exist between Türkiye and Australia, limiting market access. Presently, Turkish can operate a maximum of four weekly flights, albeit to any airport in Australia. This ASA must, of course, be renegotiated for future routes and higher frequencies.
Photo: EvrenKalinbacak I Shutterstock.
Bolat said that three weekly flights and stopping in Singapore means that “it [will not be] such an excellent service [at first].” Nonetheless, he is confident about Melbourne, not commenting, of course, on any incentives:
“Melbourne seems to offer … more advantages regarding [the] local Turkish population… the catchment area is big, and not so many airlines are flying there.”
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Where next?
Bolat said he wishes Melbourne to become daily and, presumably, non-stop. Helped by additional new generation aircraft, he hopes to launch a daily non-stop between Istanbul and Sydney within five years. Brisbane and Perth are also future possibilities.
“Even now, I can fly to Perth with [our] current aircraft, but during [certain periods], depending on the season and strong headwinds, it is not possible to operate [the route] nonstop.”
The beginning
As Istanbul Airport is on the European side of the vast city, Turkish Airlines would be the only European carrier to serve Melbourne with its own metal. It would also be the second airline to serve Australia, joining British Airways on Heathrow-Singapore-Sydney.
Photo: On The Run Photo I Shutterstock.
Of course, things are very different when the Middle East and wider Asia are considered. Looking at the Middle East only, there are 42 weekly Melbourne flights in December.
Emirates has a triple daily operation (one via Singapore); Qatar Airways double daily; and Etihad daily. Given Turkish Airlines’ vast European network, it could gain a good advantage by targeting smaller and harder-to-reach cities that are less served.
What do you make of it all? Let us know in the comments.
Source of Melbourne revelation: Aviation Week.