iGA Istanbul Airport has reached its "100 Airlines for the 100th Anniversary of the Republic" goal by welcoming Air China on board. On Friday, December 29, a special ceremony was held at the airport to mark their first flight to Istanbul.

iGA Istanbul Airport, one of the world's most important transfer hubs, now serves 100 airlines with Air China joining them. iGA Istanbul Airport, a "100's Club" member, now ranks among the world's top three airports serving the most airlines.

Speaking at the ceremony held after Air China's first flight from Beijing, the capital of the People's Republic of China, to iGA Istanbul Airport, Selahattin Bilgen, Acting CEO of iGA Istanbul Airport, said that the number of airlines from China coming to iGA Istanbul Airport, had increased to 4 with Air China.

Highlighting that the cooperation with Air China demonstrates the importance of iGA Istanbul Airline not only in Türkiye but also in both regional and global air transportation and in terms of international connections; Bilgen stated that he believed that the mutual flights between Istanbul and Beijing would further develop the commercial, cultural and tourist relations between Türkiye and China.

''Achieving the '100 Airlines in the 100th Anniversary of the Republic' goal is a great source of pride for iGA Istanbul Airport'' said Bilgen, who continued:

"It is a great honor for us that our airport, one of the biggest projects in the history of the Republic, has been named as Türkiye's "Victory Monument". This is why we have always set goals for ourselves that will increase the benefits we provide for our country. Today we achieved another of our goals. Our goal for the 100th anniversary of our republic, which we celebrated with joy, was to increase the number of airlines operating at our airport to 100, which we achieved! We have taken our place among the "mega hubs" that host the most airlines in the world. As one of the global transit hubs in the region, iGA Istanbul Airport has reached the position of hosting 100 airlines from 61 airline companies. We see this as an achievement that will make a great contribution to both our aviation industry and the country's tourism."

Bilgen: ''We will host 5 more new airlines in 2024''

"At the end of 2023, by accommodating 76 million passengers, we will surpass the projected full recovery in the aviation sector post-Covid-19 by more than 12 percent. Our target for 2024 is to host 85 million, or more, passengers at our airport, we are continuing our negotiations and efforts specific to the destinations in this regard. By hosting 5 more new airlines within the first 6 months of 2024, we believe that we will be at the top as the airport with the highest number of airlines operating in the world”.

Star Alliance member Air China, which commenced flights from iGA Istanbul Airport following Sichuan Airlines, China Southern Airlines, and China Eastern Airlines, is considered as China's flag carrier. Flights between Beijing Capital International Airport in Beijing, the capital of China, and iGA Istanbul Airport will operate three days a week (Wednesday, Friday and Sunday), with A330-200 type aircraft with a total capacity of 237 seats, of which 30 are business class.

List of the world's airports in the ''100's Club'':

1. BKK: Bangkok, Thailand – 105
2. CDG: Paris-De Gaulle, France – 105
3. IST: Istanbul Airport, Türkiye – 100
4. DXB: Dubai, United Arab Emirates – 96
5. FRA: Frankfurt, Germany - 89