The national airline of Turkey, Turkish Airlines has recently taken delivery of its first Boeing 737 Max 8 from a massive order of 40 Max 8s, 10 Max 9s and 20 737-800s.
The airline also posted a 30 percent increase in revenue for the first half of the year over the same period last year. The carrier achieved a record USD 6 billion following a remarkable growth performance in 2017. Turkish Airlines also managed to increase both passenger and cargo revenue in the first half of 2018.
During the first half of the year, Turkish Airlines managed to increase net operating profit up from USD 17 million to USD 258 million, due to the increasing demand and unit revenues despite the increasing fuel prices.
Turkish Airlines has grown phenomenally in recent years to become a truly global airline, its route network seems ever growing and now spans 49 domestic and 255 international destinations. The airline operates one of youngest fleets n the world, it has 325 aircraft, comprising 215 narrowbodies, 92 widebodies and 18 cargo aircraft.
However, in light of the recent currency fluctuations as a result of a trade war instigated by US President Donald Trump, the airline's profits are expected to be drastically cut during the second half of the year. "If the devaluation of the Turkish Lira continues as well as a continuation of the deterioration of the diplomatic and trade relations between Turkey and the US, the airline could find itself in negative territory by the end of the year." warned an aviation business strategist at a UK bank on Monday.
