Turkish Airlines passengers rise some 18 pct in H1

The total number of passengers carried by national flag carrier Turkish Airlines rose 17.8 percent to reach 35.6 million in the first half of 2018, compared to the same period last year.

According to a statement issued Tuesday by Turkish Airlines, it carried 6.3 million passengers in June, up 10.6 percent from the same month in 2017.

The carrier's load factor -- seat occupancy rate -- rose 2.6 percent points to reach 79 percent in June, while it climbed 4.3 percentage points to reach 80.4 percent during the January-June period.

International-to-international transfer passengers increased in both June and the first half of 2018, 0.7 percent and 11 percent, respectively.

The airliner also carried cargo mail of over 660,000 tons in the first half, up 27.7 percent over the first half of 2017.

Last year, it carried 68.6 million passengers with a 79.1 percent seat occupancy rate.

Turkish Airlines, founded in 1933 with a fleet of five aircraft, currently has nearly 330 aircraft, including passenger and cargo planes.

It flies to 304 destinations, including 255 international and 49 domestic destinations.