Passenger flights resume between Turkey, Armenia
The return of commercial flights follows productive normalization talks between Turkey and Armenia in Moscow.
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.
