Regular flights from Türkiye to Damascus to begin later this month: Transportation ministry

ISTANBUL

Türkiye's Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloglu announced Wednesday that Turkish low-cost airline AJet will begin operating regular flights later this month to Damascus from Ankara's Esenboga Airport and Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen Airport.

The flights from Sabiha Gokcen to the Damascus International Airport will start June 16.

"Flights between Ankara Esenboga and Damascus International will start on June 17,” Uraloglu said in a statement.

He said there will be reciprocal flights from Sabiha Gokcen to Damascus International four days a week -- Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

"From Ankara Esenboga, reciprocal flights to Damascus International will be operated 3 days a week on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays," he noted.

Uraloglu added that flights from Istanbul to Damascus are planned to be increased to seven days a week.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced Monday that alongside AJet’s operation of regular flights to Syria, Syrian Airlines will soon begin flights to Türkiye.

Türkiye's flag carrier Turkish Airlines has previously also decided to resume service to Syria in January with an Istanbul-Damascus flight after halting operations in 2012 because of that country’s civil war, which lasted more than a dozen years.