THY's goal is to become the world's second largest airline

Şirin Sever, one of the writers of the Post Newspaper, wrote about the goals of Turkish Airlines and the America project.

Sever's article:

Turkish Airlines (THY) is the most important of Turkey's brands. The level it has reached in recent years is enormous. It is one of the three largest airlines in the world. So, is it a brand that says “We are among the top three” and stops? Never! They have big goals and programs. The primary goal is to become the second largest airline in the world! That's why they rolled up their sleeves to increase the number of tourists coming from America. In this context, promotional trips were made, the first of which was New York and the second was Miami. The third trip was to Los Angeles. They also invited 5 women journalists to this journey.

We had the opportunity to have a long conversation during the 12-hour journey with Turkish Airlines Chairman of the Board Prof. Dr. Ahmet Bolat, the members of the board of directors and the marketing team. “This is our third program to America. Before the end of the year, we will go to Chicago or Washington DC for the same promotion. “Last year, we carried 72 million passengers. Approximately 25-26 million of them were tourists."

In summary, THY carried 52 million world citizens who came to Turkey. We aim to carry more than 85 million passengers this year. We are trying to turn at least 2 out of 5 of this into tourists.” That's why THY is on a promotional attack from all directions. Cooperation is made with 10 different occupational groups, including television series, health tourism, educational tourism, faith tourism, software and transportation. Here is what Bolat told…

2 million American tourists

A tourist coming to Turkey leaves a minimum of 800-900 dollars to the country. This person spends roughly $3,000 if they're from America or Australia. Especially if they receive health care and play golf, this figure exceeds 5-6 thousand dollars. In other words, our aim is not passenger arrivals, THY already carries a lot of passengers, the aim is to increase the contribution to Turkey and to gain qualified tourists. Last year, approximately 13-14 million tourists came to Cancun, Mexico. How much revenue did they collect? 40 billion dollars! Last year, 52 million tourists brought us 42 billion dollars. Look at the difference. Antalya should be like Cancun. We are trying to change the tourist segment coming to Turkey. This is the main theme of our program in Los Angeles. It means 'there has been an earthquake in Turkey, but everything is fine, do not delay your travel plan'.

Last year, 1 million American tourists came to Turkey. We set a very ambitious goal this year, we want to bring 2 million Americans to Turkey.

Our biggest strength is Turkish TV series

Currently, 80 million Spanish-speaking Americans watch Turkish TV series. Tourists coming to Turkey are eager to see Turkish actors and places in TV series. That's why we cooperate with producers and Turkish actors as well. We invited Cansu Dere on our way to Miami. Even at the airport, there were people who came and took pictures while waiting for their luggage. Turkish TV series are also very famous in Mexico, Hilal Atınbilek series is watched a lot, for example, she will be in Mexico with us.

We started shooting commercials with Kerem Bürsin. We do not shoot these films for Turkey, they will be watched in places where they are famous. A commercial with Engin Altan Düzyatan is next.

They told me recently that buses full of Mexicans come across the Maiden's Tower every Saturday; each holding a bagel and tea, they watch the tower for hours. Because they saw it in a TV series, it became a ritual for tour operators. People valued it. We also want to use this curiosity.

For example, we prepared a 4-week package program for housewives or retired women; "Come to Turkey, learn Turkish in a week, watch TV series comfortably." We cooperated with Istanbul University for this. Let's say it will come from Mexico, it's 3 thousand dollars including ticket and hotel. In a sense, we are turning 'soft power' into super power.

Currently, THY is the third largest airline in the world in terms of number of seats and kilometers. Our goal is to bring THY to second place. Very soon, Turkish Airlines will be the 59th largest economy in the world on its own. This is what we are working towards, for a better THY, for a better Turkey.

We aim to fly to Australia by the end of the year

Turkey has also come to very good places in health tourism. One of the purposes of our travels is to inform about this issue. Turkey is not just about Istanbul, Turkey has Cappadocia, Göbeklitepe, Urfa, Mardin, this country is the cradle of civilizations. 300 thousand foreign students study in Turkey, they come from more than 100 countries. We also say them; 'Don't go to your country on holidays, we'll give you discounted tickets, your parents should come too.' The longer they stay, the better.

We also aim to fly to Australia before the end of this year. Because a trip to Australia takes 17 hours, and the arrivals stay for at least a week. And the money spent by the Australian tourist is at least 3-4 thousand dollars. Last year, 120,000 Australians flew to other parts of the world via Turkey. We want 100,000 Australian tourists.