Türkiye's commercial airline fleet reached 800 passenger and cargo aircraft at the end of 2025, up 43% from 558 aircraft in 2021, according to data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (SHGM).

The five-year expansion tracks a broader surge in Turkish air travel. By the close of 2025, carriers based in the country served 356 destinations across 133 countries, and annual passenger numbers passed 247 million — a national record.

Seating capacity across the fleet grew from 104,464 seats in 2021 to 157,785 seats at the end of 2025, an increase of roughly 51% that outpaced the growth in aircraft count, pointing to a shift toward larger-gauge types.

How is the fleet split?

Passenger aircraft dominate the national register:

• 760 aircraft configured for passenger transport
• 40 aircraft in cargo operations

Turkish Airlines operates the largest share by far, with 473 aircraft — nearly 60% of the national fleet. Pegasus Airlines follows with 128 aircraft, and SunExpress, the Turkish Airlines–Lufthansa joint venture, operates 81.

What is driving the growth?

The Directorate General's data links fleet expansion to sustained infrastructure investment. Istanbul Airport, opened as one of the world's largest aviation hubs, anchors the system, while expansion projects at Antalya and Ankara Esenboğa airports have added capacity across multiple cities.

New airport construction in secondary cities has supported network growth alongside the trunk-hub buildout, feeding the expansion in destination count from the 2021 baseline to the current 356-point international network.

What does the fleet picture signal?

The 242-aircraft increase over five years — an average of roughly 48 additions per year — positions Türkiye among Europe's fastest-growing aviation markets in absolute fleet terms. Turkish Airlines alone accounts for a fleet larger than most European flag carriers operate, and its share of the national total underscores the concentration of capacity at the flag carrier.

Cargo remains a small fraction of the fleet at 5%, even as the passenger network has scaled to 133 countries — a segment where dedicated freighter capacity could constrain growth should demand for air cargo outpace belly capacity on the widening widebody network.

The SHGM figures cover aircraft used for passenger and cargo services. They indicate that the pace of Turkish fleet growth has continued through 2025, with the record 247 million passengers handled suggesting the expanded fleet is flying at historically high utilization — and that further Istanbul-hub capacity additions will shape the next phase of network development.