Airport Name and ICAO/IATA Code
Istanbul Atatürk Airport (ICAO: / LTBA : IST (Now ISL))Also, just have to include here at the top the iconic planespotting photos from the airport,
Location (City, Country)
Istanbul, Turkey
Airport Type & Size
The airport had 3 runways, a medium sized domestic terminal with jetbridges and a large international terminal with plenty of stands and remote stands. It also featured Turkish Airlines maintenance facility as well as a large cargo area with multiple domestic operators.Runway, 17L/35R at 9,843ft/3,000m, 17R/35L at 9,843ft/3,000m and 05/25 at 8,465ft/2,580m.
Why should this airport be added to World of Airports?
It was Turkish Airlines hub airport until they moved to new Istanbul in 2019, as well as being the hub for Onur Air and AtlasGlobal (Both of whom were lost during covid). Cargo operators included Turkish Cargo, Air ACT, MNG Airlines and ULS Cargo, all of whom have moved across to the new airport.I believe this airport should be added as it was Istanbul’s main airport since 1953, featuring 3 runways, a large cargo area and a large passenger terminal area with flights arriving and departing from across the globe. It could happily take the A380 and 747-8/F and it was the 10th world ranked airport in 2018 for international traffic, with 68 million passengers in that year. It also would serve as a better option compared to the new Istanbul airport as it isn’t game-breakingly big, yet will scratch the itch for an airport in the region and a large one at that. In addition, it has an interesting layout, nestled in the South of the city’s suburbs to the West of the city centre, impacting its ability to expand and making the airports operations much more interesting. The airport holds a much more nostalgic place to any visitors to the city prior to 2019 which would be an added bonus.
Major Airlines & Routes
Turkish Airlines major hub until 2019, operating flights across the world visiting 5 continents, AtlasGlobal, a large LCC operator mainly into Asia but also operating some European routes mainly to Russia and Onur Air which was a large European holiday operator with a select couple of Asian routes. Tailwind would also fit the local airlines as it too moved to new Istanbul in 2019 and was based at the airport.Other airlines that could feature as locals are Pegasus, which had a small amount of operations from there irl and which operates mainly from SAW but could easily be added in. AJet (AnadoluJet) operated flights mainly out of SAW but could easily be added to the airport too. SunExpress/Corendon don’t fly into Istanbul but are other potential options as locals.
A small Twotter operator, called Seabird Airways, from 2010-2015 out of SAW could make for a fun A Class operator. Also just any of these if they’re feasible like Sky or IZair.
Unique Features or Challenges
Funky taxiways and 3 runways, a challenging amount of space for how many operations it had, a cool approach over the ocean
Optional: Links, images, maps, or videos
2018 ISL airport - Atatürk Airport - Wikipedia
Mid-2018 overview,
Runway 05,
Runway 23,
Runways 35,
Runways 17,
Terminal (International in the centre, domestic to the left with the green roof),
Cargo (Bonus abandoned planes on the right),
Private and maintenance area,
Map,
Old flight sim site with charts,
Photos,
2009 overview of the new (2000) terminal,
Some photos from that iconic spot,
You can see the abandoned planes in the background (BEA tails),
Snow!,
And a final cool livery from 2015,
