Pegasus Airlines has become Stansted Airport’s fifth-busiest airline in 2011, the Turkish carrier has announced.
Between January and July this year, Pegasus Airlines (www.flypgs.com) saw a 58.2 per cent increase in passenger numbers compared to last year.
This increase goes against the general trend at Stansted for the first half of the year, which saw a 1.2 per cent decrease in overall passenger numbers.
Pegasus Airlines flew 24,674 passengers between Stansted and Turkey in July this year, an increase of 87.8 per cent compared to July 2010.
Stansted passenger numbers for the Turkish carrier have totalled more than 500,000 so far this year. Destinations served include direct flights to Istanbul with connections around Turkey and North Cyprus, as well as direct flights to Izmir and Bodrum.
“We are delighted to continue to expand our operations from London’s Stansted airport having become their new official welcome site partner in October,” said Guliz Ozturk, Senior Vice President, Commercial, at Pegasus Airlines.
“Stansted is a very important hub for us, allowing us to fly our valued guests from the UK to Turkey, North Cyprus and beyond.”
Pegasus Airlines recently increased its service from Stansted, and now flies from the airport to Turkey ten times per week.
The airline has seen more than a four-fold increase in passenger numbers over the past five years, flying 26 million passengers in this period.
“It is fantastic to see Pegasus Airlines’ passenger numbers grow at Stansted,” said Nick Barton, Managing Director of London Stansted.
“Turkey has been incredibly popular from Stansted last summer, with Pegasus adding hundreds of additional flights over July and August to meet demand. Pegasus has been operating from the airport for five years and we are committed to working with them to continue this success.”
The airline flew 8.6 million passengers last year, operating 94 flights a day to 30 international destinations.
(Image: eisenbahner)
