Turkish Airlines indicates interest to fly to Seychelles

It was through a meeting at the Seychelles Investment Forum held in Turkey that Turkish Airlines expressed its interest to fly to Seychelles.

It was through a meeting at the Seychelles Investment Forum held in Turkey that Turkish Airlines expressed its interest to fly to Seychelles. The President and Chief Executive of Turkish Airlines, Mr. Temel Kotil, has said that Turkish Airlines is very interested to study and to consider the possibility of flying to Seychelles.

Dr. Kotil said this during talks he had with members of the Seychelles Investment Board (SIB) and the Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) on the sidelines of the recent investment forum, which was led by Minister Pierre Laporte, the Minister responsible for Finance and Investments. The talks held in Istanbul, Turkey, with Dr. Kotil were lead by Mrs. Bernadette Willemin, the Seychelles Tourism Boardโ€™s Director responsible for the European markets.

Speaking after the talks, Mrs. Willemin said that any additional flights to service their destination can only be beneficial for their tourism business. She said, โ€œThis will help to give further boost in our quest to grow our European tourism market share and also to develop new markets using Istanbul as a hub. Turkey is seen as a European hub for many travelers.โ€

Mrs. Willemin further noted that if this possibility materializes, it will also provide another option for trade and potential air cargo transportation between Seychelles and Turkey.

It is to be noted that Turkish Airlines, which has been rated best airline in Europe for four consecutive years since 2009, currently flies to 203 destinations and 97 countries.

Dr. Kotil pointed out that the airline has a strong presence in the African region, currently undertaking daily flights to South Africa and also flying to Dar es Salaam, Kigali, and Luanda. He further noted that the interest to explore the Seychelles route will increase now that the airline will be starting flights to the Maldives next month.

Mrs. Willemin said the preliminary talks have established the basis for important discussions between the Seychelles Ministry responsible for transport, the Seychelles Ministry responsible for Tourism, the Seychelles Tourism Board, the Seychelles Civil Aviation Authority (SCAA), and other concerned parties and Turkish Airline authorities.

Mrs. Willemin described the talks as very fruitful and encouraging and said the Seychelles Tourism Board remains at the disposal of Turkish Airlines for further communication and a possible joint partnership. The Seychelles Tourism Board prides itself on the relationship it has developed with airlines flying to Seychelles.

Seychelles is a founding member of the International Council of Tourism Partners (ICTP).

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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