Low-cost carrier Pegasus Airlines flew its first service between Birmingham Airport (BHX) and Istanbul’s Sabiha Gökçen International Airport (SAW) on (21 December 2023).   Pegasus is now serving this route three times a week – on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays – with one-way fares from BHX starting at £39.99.

Nick Barton, CEO of BHX, said: “This is a lovely early Christmas gift for us and for the many customers in our region who now have even greater options for travelling to Türkiye and beyond. I have no doubt these new services to SAW will be very popular with sunseekers, pilgrims, business travellers and people going to see family both in Türkiye and across the vast array of destinations offered by Pegasus’s strong onwards network covering Asia, Europe and Africa.”

Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah (UAE), Doha (Qatar), Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada (Egypt), Beirut (Lebanon), Karachi (Pakistan), Tbilisi and Batumi (Georgia), Baku (Azerbaijan), Yerevan (Armenia), Baghdad, Erbil and Basra (Iraq), Tehran and Tabriz (Iran), Medina and Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), Almaty, Astana and Shymkent (Kazakhstan), Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan), Amman (Jordan), Bahrain and Kuwait are among the more than 130 destinations in Asia, Africa and Europe served by Pegasus from its SAW hub. In addition to its extensive international flight network, Pegasus connects guests to Türkiye’s top tourist destinations including Antalya, Bodrum, Dalaman, and Izmir.

Pegasus is one of the fastest-growing airlines post-pandemic having fully recovered its operating capacity and profitability during 2022. It is actively seeking to decarbonise its operations in line with its commitment to IATA’s Net Zero by 2050 pledge and global imperatives to protect the planet. Investing in fuel-efficient, new generation aircraft is a significant part of Pegasus’ sustainability strategy, which positions the airline as having one of the most modern fleets in Europe, with an average age of 4.6 years as of September 2023.

These ambitions are mirrored by BHX, which is aiming to have become a carbon net zero airport by 2033 by implementing low-carbon alternatives into its operation. A project is currently under way to install 12,000 solar panels across BHX’s northeast boundary. By May 2024 the green power this installation produces will cover 20% of BHX’s electricity requirement.