Passenger flights resume between Turkey, Armenia

The first flight from Turkey to Armenia in two years landed early this morning. 

The flight, operated by Turkish budget carrier Pegasus Airlines,  took off from Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen Airport last night and landed at Zvartnos Airport in Yerevan at 2:20 this morning. A FlyOne Armenia flight was also scheduled to arrive in Istanbul from Yerevan last night, Turkey’s official Anadolu Agency reported. 

Turkey cut off relations with Armenia in 1993 amid the Caucasian country’s conflict with Azerbaijan, a Turkish ally. Direct flights continued for some time, but ended in 2020 when the Turkish airline Atlasjet went bankrupt, according to Anadolu. Turkey-Armenia relations have been troubled for decades, in large part because of the Armenian genocide in the early 20th century. 

Turkey and Armenia have made considerable progress toward reestablishing normal relations in recent months. The two countries appointed special envoys for the process in December. Last month, the two diplomats met in Moscow, describing the talks as “constructive.” They agreed to continue negotiations without preconditions aimed at fully normalizing relations. 

The budget carrier FlyOne Armenia is currently offering two flights per week between Istanbul and Yerevan at around $50 per one-way ticket. Pegasus Airlines has two flights scheduled per week that cost around $75 for a one-way ticket, per the airlines’ websites.