The full launch of the new Istanbul airport has been postponed until approximately December 31. It was previously planned for the end of October. However, a small number of flights will still be operated from the new airport during these two months, reports our own correspondent Travel.ru.
Turkish Airlines, the key carrier at the future airport, intends to launch several routes from there on October 29. These will be domestic flights to Turkey's largest cities - Ankara, Antalya, Izmir, as well as to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (Ercan) and Azerbaijan (Baku). Moreover, these will not be flights transferred from the old Ataturk airport, but additional flights. The airport will also officially open on October 29 - the anniversary of the formation of the modern Turkish state.
Tickets for these flights are now available and can be found by the code of the new airport, ISL. It is not entirely clear whether this code will be retained after the flights are fully transferred there, or whether the new airport will take over the Ataturk airport code, IST. Prices for additional flights are in some cases lower than for regular flights from the old airport.
Thus, it is assumed that Turkish Airlines will be the only airline flying from the new airport until the end of the year. Previously, it was planned that all carriers would move from the old airport to the new one within two days at the end of October, but now this process has been postponed until the New Year. It is not yet entirely clear why December 31 was chosen - the intensity of flights during the New Year in Turkey decreases little. However, these plans may still be adjusted.
The new airport is located approximately 40 kilometers northwest of the center of Istanbul, near the Black Sea coast. A metro line has been built to it, which will allow you to get there in half an hour, but it will not be operational until the summer of 2019, possibly later. Until then, you will have to get there by taxi or bus. 18 express routes have been provisionally designated from various areas of the city, three of them from the Asian side of Istanbul. The intervals will be 15-30 minutes, the buses will be equipped with individual video screens, wireless Internet and ports for charging mobile electronics. A taxi ride along an unloaded highway from the center takes about 40-60 minutes, but after all flights are transferred, the load on the roads will increase significantly and travel time may increase.
The giant new airport will be launched in stages. Initially, there will be three runways in operation, with their number increasing to six in the future. The airport is expected to have over 500 check-in desks on 13 "islands", 228 passport control booths, 143 jet bridges (there may be fewer at the first stage), and over 20,000 seats for waiting passengers. Self-service baggage drop-off desks, automatic turnstiles at boarding gates, and other innovations are also promised.
Initially, the terminal will have five piers, one of which is for domestic flights. Like most other major airports in the world, the new Istanbul airport will be “quiet”: there will be no announcements about check-in or the start of boarding, except for sudden changes and other non-standard cases. For passengers arriving from the EU and some other countries, there will be no security check when transferring to another flight - they will exit the plane directly into the clean departure area.
It is planned that a 451-room hotel (under the Yotel brand) will appear at the airport. The airport parking will be designed for 18 thousand indoor and 22 thousand outdoor spaces. Some services, cafes and the like may start working a little later than the opening of the terminal or the transfer of the bulk of flights.
The new airport will significantly increase the number of flights to Istanbul, including from Russia. It will also dramatically improve conditions for passengers compared to the long-overcrowded existing Ataturk airport.
The old Ataturk airport will not be closed completely. Firstly, cargo flights will continue there for at least another year (then they will also be transferred to the new airport). Secondly, general aviation and business aviation will remain there. Finally, air shows are planned to be held there. At least part of the terminals are supposed to be converted into an aviation university, and part of the territory may become a park.
Source: travel.ru
