ISTANBUL – Turkish Airlines – one of the fastest growing airlines in Europe – is the latest airline to join Star Alliance, which includes carriers such as Singapore Airlines, United and Lufthansa.
Turkey’s national flag carrier adds 31 destinations to the network – mainly in Turkey, Central Asia and the Middle East.
It carried nearly 20 million passengers with a fleet size of 102 aircraft in 2007.
The carrier plans to fly to 11 new destinations and add an additional 22 aircraft to its fleet by the end of the year.
Turkish Airlines said joining Star is a step towards it becoming a major player in the world of aviation.
“Joining the alliance is an important step for the airline’s future, building on its strength of bridging Europe and Asia through its Istanbul hub,” Turkish Airlines chief executive Temel Kotil said.
Star Alliance chief executive Jaan Albrecht said the alliance had gained a new member carrier with a strong home market which is also one of the fastest growing economies in the world.
