Turkey restarts international flights

Turkey has restarted international flights for the first time since planes were grounded on March 28 to stem the coronavirus pandemic. A plane belonging to Anadolu Jet, a subsidiary of Turkish Airlines, left Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen airport for London at 08:40 a.m. Thursday.

It was followed by flights to Amsterdam and Dusseldorf, Germany. Meanwhile, a Turkish Airlines flight also departed for Dusseldorf from the city’s other airport, Istanbul Airport.

Only nationals of the destination countries or those with residence permits were allowed on the flights. Entry into the terminals was also strictly regulated, with officials checking temperatures at the entrance and only allowing passengers with valid tickets to step inside.

Turkey resumed domestic flights on June. 1.