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Canadian airline Air Transat inaugurated service to Istanbul Airport on Tuesday, marking the first new carrier agreement from the Americas to the Turkish hub in several years.
Flight TS214 departed Toronto on Monday evening and touched down at Istanbul Airport at 2:45 p.m. local time on Tuesday, with the return flight TS215 departing Istanbul at 4:40 p.m. the same day. The airline will operate the route twice weekly using Airbus A330-200 wide-body aircraft.
Air Transat becomes the 116th scheduled passenger carrier to serve Istanbul Airport and the ninth airline added to the hub's network in 2025. The Quebec-based carrier, which won the 2025 Skytrax World Airline Awards title for "World's Best Leisure Airline," specializes in holiday destinations across the Americas and Europe.
Server Aydin, deputy general manager for commercial operations at IGA, which operates Istanbul Airport, emphasized the strategic importance of the new route at a launch ceremony held at the airport's departing passenger terminal.
"Air Transat's launch of flights to Istanbul shows that our ties with the American continent are strategically expanding and our global network is deepening further," Aydin said. He added that the route would strengthen Istanbul's position in the international aviation ecosystem while boosting tourism and trade potential between Türkiye and Canada.
The ceremony was attended by Natalie Britton, Canada's consul general in Istanbul, Howard Liebman, vice president of corporate affairs at Air Transat, along with executives from both IGA and Air Transat, airport staff and passengers.
The twice-weekly service will operate on Tuesday and Saturday evenings from Toronto, with return flights departing Istanbul on Wednesdays and Sundays. Air Transat plans to expand the route to three weekly flights beginning in June 2026.
Istanbul Airport currently offers connections to more than 330 destinations worldwide. The facility has positioned itself as a major global aviation hub, with the new Air Transat service expected to facilitate both leisure and business travel between Türkiye and Canada.
Air Transat's focus on vacation destinations aligns with growing demand for transatlantic leisure travel. The airline's entry into the Istanbul market represents a significant addition to connectivity options between North America and Türkiye's largest city.
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