Istanbul Atatürk Airport

Atatürk Airport (IATA: ISL, ICAO: LTBA) (former IATA code: IST) (Turkish: Atatürk Havalimanı) is a general aviation airport in Istanbul. It used to be an intercontinental passenger and cargo hub and closed to commercial passenger flights on 6 April 2019 when all flights were transferred to the new Istanbul Airport. Since then, the airport has been open only for maintenance, general aviation, air taxis, business flights, and state and diplomatic aircraft, while commercial passenger flights are all handled at the newly built Istanbul Airport[4][5] with all freight operations subsequently relocating as well on 5 February 2022.[6]

Atatürk Airport

Atatürk Havalimanı
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerGeneral Directorate of State Airports (DHMİ)
OperatorTAV Airports
ServesIstanbul, Turkey
LocationYeşilköy, Bakırköy, Istanbul
Opened1912 (1912) (as airfield),
1953 (1953) (as airport)[1]
Closed6 April 2019 (2019-04-06) (passengers)
5 February 2022 (2022-02-05) (cargo)
Elevation AMSL163 ft / 50 m
Coordinates40°58′34″N 028°48′51″E
Websitewww.ataturkhavalimani.gov.tr
Map
ISL
Location within Istanbul
ISL
ISL (Turkey)
ISL
ISL (Europe)
ISL
ISL (North Atlantic)
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
05/23 2,580 8,465 Grooved Asphalt
Statistics (2019)
Total passengers16,112,804[2]
International passengers11,876,601
Source: Turkish AIP at Eurocontrol Turkey[3]

History

In 1911, a small apron with two hangars was built in Yeşilköy, Istanbul, for the Turkish Armed Forces.[7] Mustafa Kemal Atatürk founded Türk Tayyare Cemiyeti (Turkish Aircraft Company, today THK Türk Hava Kurumu) in 1925. In 1933, today's Turkish Airlines, the Türkiye Devlet Hava Yolları started its flights with two Curtiss Kingbird aircraft. Flights from Istanbul to Ankara and Athens began. The small apron was expanded and a new passenger terminal was built. This is considered the beginning of the airport's 86-year history. It was originally named Yeşilköy Airport. In the 1980s, it was renamed Atatürk International Airport. It served more than 60 million passengers in 2015, making it the 11th-busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic and the 10th-busiest in the world in terms of international passenger traffic. In 2017, it was Europe's 5th-busiest airport after London Heathrow, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Frankfurt Airport, and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, having fallen from third place after a decline in passengers due to security fears.[8]

Istanbul Atatürk Airport was replaced in regards to commercial passenger functions by the newly constructed Istanbul Airport, in April 2019, in order to meet Istanbul's growing domestic and international air traffic demand as a source, destination, and transit point. Both airports were used in parallel for five months from late 2018, with the new airport gradually expanding to serve more domestic and regional destinations.[9] On 6 April 2019, Atatürk's IST IATA airport code was inherited by Istanbul Airport and Atatürk Airport was assigned the code ISL after the full transfer of all scheduled passenger activities to the new airport was completed.[10] The final commercial flight, Turkish Airlines Flight 54, left Atatürk Airport on 6 April 2019 at 2.44am for Singapore.[11]

On 5 February 2022, Turkish Cargo relocated all cargo flights and operations from their former hub at the airport to the new Istanbul Airport.[12][13]

Facilities

Defunct passenger terminals

Istanbul Atatürk Airport featured two passenger terminals linked to each other.[14] The former domestic terminal is the older and smaller of the two terminals and exclusively handled domestic flights within Turkey. It featured its own check-in and airside facilities on the upper floor, with twelve departure gates equipped with jet bridges[14] and five baggage claim belts on the ground level.[14] The former international terminal was inaugurated in 2000 and used for all international flights. It featured a large main hall containing 8 check-in isles and a wide range of airside facilities such as shops and restaurants, 34 gates equipped with jet bridges, and 7 bus-boarding stands. The arrivals floor had 11 baggage claim belts.[14] In addition, there is a general aviation terminal to the northwest of the passenger terminals.[15]

Defunct cargo terminal

The airport featured a dedicated cargo terminal including facilities for the handling of radioactive and refrigerated freight.[16]

Other facilities
  • Turkish Airlines has its headquarters in the Turkish Airlines General Management Building, located within the airport campus.[17][18]
  • Onur Air has its headquarters in Technical Hangar B.[19]
  • Prima Aviation Services Inc. has its MRO facilities in new technical site at the air side Gate A.[20]

Airlines and destinations

As of April 2019, all passenger operations have been relocated to the new Istanbul Airport. As of February 2022, all cargo operations have been relocated to the new airport as well.[6] Currently the airport serves only private and business jets[21] as well as operations on behalf of the Government of Turkey.

Statistics
The original terminal at Yeşilköy in 1970.
The former main terminal inaugurated in 1983, which then served as the domestic section until 2019.
The now defunct main passenger terminal in 2013.
Annual passenger traffic at ISL airport. See source Wikidata query.

Passenger statistics for Istanbul Atatürk Airport for the years 2002–2018 are below.[22]

Passenger statistics at Istanbul Atatürk Airport[22]
Year Domestic
passengers		 Passenger
% change		 International
passenger		 Passenger
% change		 Total
passenger		 Passenger
% change		 World rank
international		 World rank
total
2018[23]19,170,141248,811,3051067,981,446610th17th
2017[24]19,450,347244,277,101763,727,448511th15th
201619,099,874141,019,341260,119,215211th[25]14th[26]
2015[27]19,375,402441,947,3271061,322,729810th[28]11th[29]
201418,754,002938,200,7881256,954,790[30]119th13th[31]
201317,224,1051334,096,7701451,320,8751410th18th
201215,281,3211429,717,1962444,998,5082013th[32]21st[33]
201113,604,3521523,847,8351737,452,1871717th28th
201011,800,999320,344,6201132,145,619819th37th
200911,393,645118,363,739829,757,3844
200811,484,0632017,069,0692628,553,13223
20079,595,923613,600,3061223,196,2299
20069,091,6932112,174,281321,265,97410
20057,512,2823911,781,4871619,293,76924
20045,430,9257010,169,6761415,600,60129
20033,196,045128,908,268512,104,3427
20022,851,4878,506,20411,357,691

Istanbul Atatürk Airport ranked 17th in ACI statistics at the end of 2011 in terms of international traffic with almost 24 million international passengers. It ranked 29th in the world in terms of total passenger traffic with over 37.4 million passengers in 2011. Its total traffic within the last decade more than tripled, and its international traffic quadrupled.[34][35]

Accidents and incidents
  • On 30 January 1975, Turkish Airlines Flight 345, crashed into the Sea of Marmara during its final approach to the airport. All 42 passengers and crew on board were killed.[36]
  • On 25 April 2015, Turkish Airlines Flight 1878, operated by A320-200, TC-JPE was severely damaged in a landing accident. The aircraft aborted the first hard landing, which inflicted engine and gear damage. On the second attempt at landing, the right gear collapsed and the aircraft rolled off the runway spinning 180 degrees. All on board evacuated without injury.[37]
  • On 28 June 2016, three terrorists killed 44 civilians by gunfire and subsequent suicide bombings, along with 239 civilians injured.[38][39] The three men arrived in a taxi cab and opened fire at the terminal. The three men then blew themselves up when police opened fire. The airport has X-ray scanners at the entrance to the terminal but security checks for cars are limited.[38][40]
  • On 15 July 2016, the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt took place. During the attempted coup, units of the Turkish Armed Forces seized control of the airport and closed it, but it was reopened after pro-government forces regained control.[41][42][43]

Accolades
  • The Turkish Chamber of Civil Engineers lists İstanbul Atatürk Airport as one of the fifty civil engineering feats in Turkey, a list of remarkable engineering projects completed in the first 50 years of the chamber's existence.[44]
  • In the 2013 Air Transport News awards ceremony, İstanbul Atatürk Airport was named Airport of the Year.[45]
  • The airport was named Europe's Best Airport in the 40-50 million passenger per year category at the 2013 Skytrax World Airport Awards.[46]

References
  1. "Atatürk Havalimanı" (in Turkish). Archived from the original on 8 April 2018. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  2. "YOLCU TRAFİĞİ" (PDF).
  3. "LTBA – Istanbul / Atatürk / International". AIP Turkey. Ankara: DHMİ Genel Müdürlüğü. 5 January 2018. part AD 2 LTBA. Archived from the original on 11 June 2003. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
  4. "Turkish Airlines aims to spread its wings at Istanbul's giant new airport". Reuters. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  5. "Full transfer of flights from Ataturk to new Istanbul hub begins". Flight Global. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  6. "Atatürk Havalimanı'nda kargo uçuşları sona erdi. (in Turkish)". Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  7. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 25 February 2009. Retrieved 29 January 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. "'Full' Heathrow Extends European Hub Lead as Terror Hurts Rivals". Bloomberg Business. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  9. Kucukgocmen, Ali (29 October 2018). "Erdogan opens new 'Istanbul Airport', Turkey's biggest". Reuters. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
  10. "Istanbul New Airport to affect entire European airspace". Daily Sabah. 19 February 2018. Archived from the original on 19 February 2018. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
  11. "Last flight leaves Ataturk as Istanbul switches airports". Reuters. 6 April 2019. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
  12. aircargoworld.com - Turkish Cargo completes transition to new Istanbul Airport 8 February 2022
  13. dailysabah.com - Turkish Cargo bids farewell to Atatürk Airport, shifts to new hub 8 February 2022
  14. "Terminal Map". Ataturkairport.com. Archived from the original on 23 November 2016. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
  15. "General Aviation Terminal". Ataturekairport.com. Archived from the original on 25 July 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
  16. "Cargo Terminal". Ataturekairport.com.
  17. "Contact Us." Turkish Airlines. Retrieved on 26 June 2010.
  18. "Map." Turkish Airlines. Retrieved on 26 June 2010. Archived 11 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  19. "Communication". Onur Air. Retrieved 8 June 2014. Map Archived 17 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine. "Head Office Atatürk Havalimanı B Kapısı Teknik Hangar Yanı 34149 Yeşilköy/İSTANBUL/TÜRKİYE"
  20. "Communication". Prima Aviation Services Inc. Retrieved 8 June 2014. Map. "Head Office YESILKOY MAH. HAVAALANI CAD. ATATURK HAVALIMANI NO:2/12-1 ZIP: 34149 BAKIRKOY / ISTANBUL"
  21. "Turkish Airlines Ends Cargo Operations At Istanbul Atatürk Airport". Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  22. "Devlet Hava Meydanları İşletmesi Genel Müdürlüğü". Dhmi.gov.tr. Archived from the original on 28 June 2015. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
  23. "December". DHMI. January 2019. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
  24. "YOLCU TRAFİĞİ". 6 January 2018. Archived from the original on 6 January 2018. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  25. "ACI releases preliminary 2016 world airport traffic rankings—Robust gains in passenger traffic at hub airports serving trans-Pacific and East Asian routes". Airports Council International. 19 April 2017. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  26. "2016 Annual Airport Traffic Report" (PDF). Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. 28 April 2017. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  27. DHMİ Genel Müdürlüğü. "Devlet Hava Meydanları İşletmesi Genel Müdürlüğü". Dhmi.gov.tr. Archived from the original on 28 June 2015. Retrieved 5 July 2012.
  28. "Year to date International Passenger Traffic: DEC 2015". Airports Council International. 11 April 2016. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  29. "Year to date Passenger Traffic". Airports Council International. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
    "Year to date Passenger Traffic: DEC 2017". Airports Council International. 30 April 2018. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  30. "Year to 2014 dec. passenger". Dhmi.gov.tr. 21 December 2014. Archived from the original on 21 December 2014. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
  31. "Year to date Passenger Traffic". Airports Council International.
    "Year to date Passenger Traffic: DEC 2017". Airports Council International. 30 April 2018. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  32. "Year to date". Airports Council International. 24 April 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
    "Year to date International Passenger Traffic:DEC 2015". Airports Council International. 11 April 2016. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  33. "Year to date". Airports Council International. 24 April 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
    "Year to date Passenger Traffic: DEC 2017". Airports Council International. 30 April 2018. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  34. "ACI Europe 2007 Final Rankings". ACI-Europe.org. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  35. "International Passenger Traffic Monthly Ranking: Aug 2008". Airports Council International. 12 November 2008. Archived from the original on 1 January 2009.
  36. "Aircraft accident Fokker F-28 Fellowship 1000 TC-JAP Istanbul-Yeşilköy Airport (IST) [Marmara Sea]". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  37. Hradecky, Simon. "Accident: THY A320 at Istanbul on Apr 25th 2015, hard landing, go-around, engine problem, gear problem, gear collapse, runway excursion". Aviation Herald. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  38. "Istanbul Ataturk airport attack: 41 dead and more than 230 hurt - BBC News". BBC News. 29 June 2016. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  39. Sabrina Tavernise; Ceylan Yeginsu (28 June 2016). "Attack at Istanbul Airport Leaves at Least 31 Dead". New York Times. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  40. "Blast and gunfire 'at Istanbul airport'". BBC News. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  41. "Turkey coup: How mobiles beat tanks and saved Erdogan". BBC News. 18 July 2016.
  42. Coskun, Humeyra Pamuk (18 July 2016). "At height of Turkish coup bid, rebel jets had Erdogan's plane in their sights". Reuters.
  43. "TRT'de bildiri okuttular".
  44. "50 yılda 50 eser - HHPortal". Hhportal.com. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
  45. "Air Transport News". Atn.aero. 18 March 2013. Archived from the original on 22 March 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  46. "World's Best Airports by Passenger Numbers | 2013". Worldairportawards.com. Archived from the original on 23 April 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2013.

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