British Airways has started new service Between London Heathrow and Istanbul's city airport with the inaugural flight touching down at Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen Airport on Thursday, June 1st, 2023. The route will operate four times weekly with an Airbus A320 Family aircraft.
On Friday (June 2, 2023), British Airways announced the launch of service between London Heathrow (LHR) and Istanbul in Türkiye, with the inaugural flight touching down at Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW) on Thursday, June 1st. The route will operate four times weekly on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays with a mix of Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft. Return fares start from £368 in Club Europe (Business Class) and £130 in Euro Traveller (Economy Class). Celebrating the airport’s namesake, Ms. Sabiha Gökçen, the world’s first female fighter pilot, British Airways selected an all-female flight crew, with Captain Jessica Telford and First Officer Kerry Bennett operating the inaugural flight.
In Friday’s announcement, British Airways’ Head of Corporate Sales in Europe, Elisabeth Ruff, said,
“As we continue our investment programme into new products, services, and technology, we’re excited to open up even greater connectivity between two of the world’s leading cities, Istanbul and London.”
Sabiha Gökçen Airport’s CEO, Berk Albayrak, added,
“British Airways has become the 45th airline to operate to Sabiha Gökçen and now our passengers can benefit from its extensive global route network. British Airways serves 200 destinations in more than 65 countries and with their large fleet and renowned services, the addition of this route will undoubtedly further enhance the travel experience of our guests.”
Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen Airport offers service to 154 destinations across 51 countries via flights with 45 airlines. During the first four months of 2023, the airport served nearly 14 million passengers. Sabiha Gökçen is Türkiye’s second largest airport and has the capacity to handle 41 million passengers annually.
Source: British Airways