The speculation that Turkish Airlines is eyeing Auckland services ramped up this week after the carrier’s chairman was quoted on a Turkish website as saying Auckland was among the points on the carrier’s planned network expansion.
As reported in Dec (see HERE), industry commentators tipped that the carrier was eying services to AKL. Representatives from the airline were said to have visited in Dec. This week local Turkish website Turizm Ekonomi reported TK chair Ahmet Bolat as announcing plans to launch services to Minneapolis and Auckland in the first half of this year. The comments were made during the Turkish Airlines Management Summit 2025. It is no secret that Auckland Airport has been pro-active in touting new carriers to operate into AKL. TK’s service ex Australia operates via Singapore, and potential flights ex
New Zealand are also expected to be routed over SIN.
. . . AKL A Drawcard
As highlighted in 2024, an airline like TK will be looking at a variety of factors when choosing routing options for any New Zealand service says aviation analyst Garth Williamson from WSP. “Singapore, Bangkok and emerging markets like Indonesia and Vietnam may be attractive by offering an existing or underserved market, onward connectivity, and Star Alliance hubs in the case of Singapore and Bangkok.”
