SomalilandPress
Sunday, December 18, 2011
The Turkish Airlines this week said it will add flights to and from
the Somali capital at the beginning of January in 2012 as it tries to
draw more African passengers.Turkish Airlines (THY) CEO Temel
Kotil told Anatolia news agency that THY will fly to Mogadishu
twice-daily. The announcement follows as the government of Turkey
deployed engineers to renovate and modernize the airport in Mogadishu.
The
Turkish government announced dozens of development projects for Somalia
including hospitals, schools, scholarships, roads and other key
infrastructures. Ankara says its vision for Somalia is more than just
the infrastructure.
The Somali public has hailed the Turkish
initiatives and expressed their gratitude to the Turkish government and
people for their generous support. Somalis are excited about the THY’s
expansion plans. Since the visit by the Turkish Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdoğan to Mogadishu in August to rise awareness about the Somali
crisis–the Somali people no longer feel forgotten. Somalis are
optimistic and feel a wind of change is on its way. Turkey might rescue
Somalia from itself. The Turkish nation has promised to leave no stone
unturned until Somalia achieved a lasting peace.
The national flag
carrier airline of Turkey is yet to reveal the flight routes and dates
when it will begin direct flights to Mogadishu. With the new connection
offering direct flights to Somalia which was no-go-zone for the last two
decades, the new THY connection will be ideal to many Somalis in the
Diaspora. THY plans to carry 38 million passengers in 2012 and generate
$7.8 billion in revenues.