Turkish Airlines is further expanding its transatlantic network by launching its first route between Istanbul and Denver this summer.

The fast-growing carrier will start operating the route to Denver on 11 June when the Colorado city will become Turkish Airlines¡¯ 14^th US destination.

Istanbul-Denver services will initially operate three times per week on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday using Airbus A350-900 aircraft fitted with 316 seats. Frequency will then be increased to four weekly flights with an extra service on Sunday from 9 July.

Fatih Durmaz, Turkish Airlines¡¯ vice president of sales in the Americas, said: ¡°We are very glad to celebrate yet another important gateway opening in the United States.

¡°The Denver expansion represents our first-ever endeavour in the Rocky Mountain region of the US as we increase our presence across the continent.¡±

The announcement of the new transatlantic route comes as the airline said it had carried 83.4 million passengers during 2023, an increase from 71.8 million passengers in 2022. ?

Turkish Airlines increased international capacity by 16 per cent last year with passenger numbers reaching 53 million, while domestic flights saw a 23.5 per cent year-on-year increase in capacity and carried 30 million travellers.

¡°This was due to outpacing its peers with faster capacity increases, leveraging its agility, extensive flight network and a highly qualified workforce maintained throughout the pandemic,¡± said the airline in a statement.

While global aviation capacity still lagged 2019 levels by 12 per cent in 2023, according to IATA figures, Turkish Airlines exceeded its pre-pandemic capacity by 27 per cent last year.

The airline is continuing its upward momentum in 2024 with traffic for the first quarter of the year rising to 18.5 million ¨C up by 8.4 per cent on the same period last year. This included a 10.3 per cent rise in international passengers to 7.6 million.