SunExpress Plans Aggressive Expansion in the UK Market
SunExpress, a joint venture between Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines, is set to expand its presence in the UK, planning to add two new destinations each year. This ambitious expansion follows a significant increase in the carrier’s UK capacity, which has grown to 1.3 million seats since 2022.
Max Kownatzki, CEO of SunExpress, detailed the carrier’s UK strategy during a presentation at the Aviation Club of the UK in London. Starting with operations to five UK airports in 2022, SunExpress has consistently added new destinations each year. As of 2023, the airline included Bristol and Newcastle to its UK network, and by 2024, it had expanded to nine destinations including Leeds Bradford and London Stansted.
“Our growth trajectory in the UK has been robust, starting from 400,000 seats in our initial year to targeting 1.3 million seats this year,” Kownatzki explained. The airline now operates 136 weekly flights between Turkey and the UK, up from 73 weekly flights in peak summer 2023.
The expansion includes new routes such as Dalaman-Edinburgh and multiple connections between Turkey and London Stansted, enhancing the airline’s footprint in key UK markets. SunExpress aims to not only increase frequency but also upgrade its aircraft sizes once all viable UK destinations are covered, optimizing capacity and meeting the growing demand.
Despite deriving 85% of its ticket revenue from Austria, Germany, and Switzerland, the UK has emerged as a significant market for SunExpress. The carrier is diversifying its offerings beyond traditional sun and beach holidays to include activity-based travel and cultural tourism, which boost ancillary revenues and help balance seasonal fluctuations.
As part of its strategy to mitigate seasonality, SunExpress has established a “counter-seasonality” taskforce. This initiative has led to creative solutions such as damp-leasing aircraft to South African Airways during the winter and reassigning cabin crew to maritime cruise roles in the off-season.
Looking ahead, SunExpress plans to introduce new winter routes in 2024-25, connecting Antalya with Stansted and Izmir with Gatwick, and in summer 2025, a thrice-weekly service from Antalya to Liverpool. Additional routes from Glasgow to Antalya and Dalaman are scheduled for next April.
Kownatzki highlighted the resilience and growth potential of Turkey, noting that despite challenges like the 2016 military coup and recent natural disasters, the country has maintained robust growth rates over the last 35 years.
In 2024, SunExpress is poised to operate a global network of 200 routes to 68 destinations in 35 countries, reflecting its strong recovery and strategic expansion post-pandemic. This growth strategy not only strengthens SunExpress’s position in the UK market but also enhances its global route network, catering to a diverse range of passenger needs.