Key Istanbul roads were closed for traffic and flights were suspended as Turkish Airlines moved immense amounts of equipment to the new airport. The old Ataturk International Airport marked its last passenger flight.
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Turkish Airlines relocated to the new Istanbul Airport on Saturday, as the sprawling new hub officially took the bulk of passenger traffic previously handled by Ataturk airport.
The airline dubbed the move, which took 45 hours, as "the largest in aviation history." It involved transporting some 47,000 tons of equipment in 686 trucks and hundreds of other vehicles from their old base of operations near the Sea of Marmara, some 40 kilometers (25 miles) south. The company also flew 337 of its planes to the new location.
Istanbul Airport: Big move up and running
Istanbul experienced plenty of superlatives last weekend: After opening the new Istanbul Airport half a year ago, Turkish Airlines were moving in to what was expected to become the world's largest airport.
Flight operations at the new airport started on Saturday. During the big move, around 47,300 tons of heavy equipment were transported, including aircraft towing vehicles, each weighing 44 tons. According to Turkish Airlines, the total amount of cargo was equivalent to the freight of 5,000 trucks. More than 1,800 employees are working on the move.
Image: Reuters/M. Sezer
Eye-catching tower
The financial viablity of the new airport will probably not be known for a decade or so. It is also a prestigious project for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who celebrated the official opening with a huge show in 2018. Its importance was also taken into account by the architects, as the tower's ambitious shape shows.
Image: Getty Images/C. McGrath
Setting its sights high
Istanbul Airport today has 90 million passengers a year. In 2028, the number is expected to rise to 200 million. The €10.5 billion ($11.2 billion) airport should by then have a capacity of 500 aircraft and handle 2,000 takeoffs and landings daily. In terms of passenger traffic, Atlanta is currently the largest airport in the world, with nearly 104 million passengers.
Image: picture-alliance/AA/UGA
Farewell to Istanbul Ataturk
Turkish Airlines is moving in with 280 aircraft, 151 of which will fly over from the old Ataturk airport to the new one. Some 129 aircraft returning from home or abroad will also soon make the new airport home. Ataturk was closed on Sunday for all passenger flights. The third airport, Sabiha Gokcen, on the Asian side of the city will remain in operation.
Image: picture-alliance/M. Mainka
Great anticipation
Turkish Airlines moved into its new hub last weekend. The move began on Friday night. "It will be a morning when the sun shines on Turkish aviation and planes take off and land at Istanbul Airport," CEO Bilal Eksi said.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/V. Hache
Next step on an ambitious path
Istanbul now has a third airport. The largest and most important, Ataturk Airport, could not be extended due to its location in the city. Therefore, the new airport was built on a green field site outside the city. It is projected as a hub in the European-Asian air traffic and in the foreseeable future the largest airport.
Image: Reuters/M. Sezer
Here we go
After several delays, the new airport became fully operational last weekend. Although it was already inaugurated by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on National Day on October 29, 2018, many parts of the facility were still under construction. Only now are flight operations completely relocated from Ataturk Airport.
Image: picture-alliance/AA/K. Ozer
Protests against working conditions
Although the project was carried out almost as quickly as planned, it did not go totally smoothly. For example, the working conditions on the construction site caused protests. There were many deaths during construction and the location was also criticized because it is often windy and foggy there. In addition, air traffic could disrupt an important bird migration route between Europe and Asia.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/E. Gurel
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The move blocked three main highways and suspended all other air traffic from both Ataturk and the Istanbul airports for 12 hours overnight.
On Saturday, the staff at Istanbul Airport welcomed the company to their "new home."
"We have a long journey ahead of us which will take long years [sic]," the airport officials wrote on Twitter.
Turkey's government has big plans for the new hub, aiming to make it the biggest airport in the world. Its development was spearheaded by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The president, who was born in Istanbul, once called it "an airport that Istanbul deserves."
Although Erdogan officially opened the new airport in October last year, its share of passenger traffic had remained limited due to delays and labor strikes. With the first Turkish Airlines flight taking off from the new airport to Ankara on Saturday, the hub is now set to replace the decades-old Ataturk compound.
A Saturday morning flight to Singapore marked the last ever Turkish Airlines passenger flight from the Ataturk airport, the company said. The carrier also told the DPA news agency that international airlines will start flying from the new Istanbul Airport by midnight on Saturday.
Istanbul Airport is awaiting passengersImage: picture-alliance/M. Mainka
Aiming for 200 million passengers
Authorities predict the Istanbul Airport would welcome 90 million passengers per year in the current phase of development, with three functioning runways. In comparison, the world's busiest airport in Atlanta saw 104 million guests in 2018. By 2028, however, the Turkish hub is set to operate six runways and service 200 million passengers per year, leaving any competition far behind.
It would also cover 76 square kilometers, making it three times bigger than the Ataturk airport.
Erdogan's AK party used the €10.25 billion ($11.6 billion) project as a tool to draw in votes. However, activists have argued that the massive development is destroying forests and wildlife. Workers also protested poor living conditions, bad food, delays in wages and fatal accidents during the construction. In September, workers clashed with security forces who used tear gas and water cannon to break up the rally.
