Turkish Airlines (THY) launched a direct flight from Istanbul to Palermo, one of Italy’s historical tourism cities.
The first flight numbered TK 1373, which took off from Istanbul at 06.45 in the morning, landed at Palermo Airport at 8.30 am local time.
At the ceremony held here, Palermo Airport General Manager Natalie Chieppa and Airport President Salvatore Burrafato welcomed the delegation with flowers, along with Istanbul Airport Civil Administrative Officer Ilker Haktankacmaz and THY General Manager Bilal Eksi.
Speaking at the press conference held after the first plane was welcomed and a souvenir photo taken, Bilal Eksi said, “We are pleased to add Palermo, which is our 344th flight destination in the world and 9th in Italy, to our flight network. We aim to offer our guests the privileges of flying with Turkish Airlines by strengthening our bond with Italy and to bring them to the beauties stretching from Istanbul to Palermo.”
Referring to Turkiye’s aid to Italy during the COVID-19 pandemic, Eksi continued as follows:
“During the pandemic period, as THY, we did our best to stand by our friendly country Italy. As a result of these efforts, I was awarded Italy’s Star Order Knight on behalf of our company and our employees. I am proud to receive and carry this medal as an indication of the friendship between the two countries. Long live the friendship of Italy and Turkiye.”
Natalie Chieppa, General Manager of Palermo Airport, said, “We have been negotiating for these flights for 4 years, but after the pandemic, we were lucky. THY’s flight to Palermo will increase the quality of this airport. THY is one of the largest airlines in the world. We can say that it is the largest. We will be very happy to work with THY for the Far East and the Arabian Peninsula.”
Planned flights to Palermo will be operated by Boeing 737-800 type aircraft from Istanbul Airport to Punta Raisi Airport. Istanbul-Palermo flights will be operated 4 days a week, Monday, Friday, Wednesday and Sunday. Citizens will be able to travel with prices starting from $259, including all taxes, for the opening round trip.
Source: Trthaber / Prepared by Irem Yildiz