Armenians welcome relaunching of Istanbul-Yerevan flights

By Davit Kachkachishvili

YEREVAN (AA) - As flights between Istanbul and Yerevan relaunch Wednesday, Armenians believe it will make a significant contribution to the development of relations between the two peoples.

Residents of Yerevan spoke to Anadolu Agency about the flights which were operated by Atlasjet until 2020 but were stopped because of the company's bankruptcy.

Gagik Dorunts said the flights will contribute to the strengthening of economic and political relations.

Dorunts, 73, underlining the need for peace in the region, said: "It is good that there are flights between Turkiye and Armenia. When it comes to trade, it is possible to bring very high-quality goods from Turkiye. We want to see Armenian products in the shops in Turkiye."

Arpi Maisuryan pointed out that flights are of great importance for the development of tourism and trade.

“There are many Armenians living in Istanbul. This is good for them, too, and I do not see it negatively that tourism develops to a certain extent,” said Maisuryan. “As for trade, there are already Turkish products here and people are satisfied with this quality.”

Meanwhile, Hamlet Hakopyan stressed that it is necessary to start the flights and it will make a great contribution to strengthening ties between people and the maintenance of peace in the region.

- Countdown to flights

Pegasus Airlines will operate flights from Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen Airport to Yerevan on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays, and from Yerevan to Istanbul on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays.

FlyOne will operate flights from Yerevan to Istanbul Airport on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

In 2019, 61,431 passengers were transported between the two countries. The flight time takes two hours.

* Writing by Seda Sevencan​​​​​​​