Turkish Airlines marks delivery of 400th aircraft with special flight

Turkish Airlines has taken delivery of its 400th aircraft, an Airbus A350-900 named One Love.

The carriers CEO, Bilal Ekşi, recognised the significance of the day by sharing a photo of the new plane and its crew.

According to Airways the aircraft was delivered on February 24, 2023, and entered service on March 4, 2023, with a flight from Istanbul to Vancouver.

The Turkish Airlines boss also invited victims and their families of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake, which struck areas of Turkey and Syria on February 6, 2023, to fly on the new plane.

“We became #OneHeart. We decided to record this meaningful moment with the flight crew of our 400th aircraft in our fleet, where we hosted our earthquake victims and their families,” wrote Bilal Ekşi in a statement. “I would like to thank every member of our #THY family for their devoted work since the first day of the earthquake.”

According to Umut Acar, Turkey’s Ambassador to Tajikistan, Turkish Airlines has made over 4,000 flights in response to the earthquake and evacuated 400,000 people.

It is estimated that the earthquake in Syria and Turkey killed over 45,000 and made millions homeless.