On Apr. 1, Turkish Airlines became the 20th member of Star Alliance in ceremonies in Istanbul, culminating a 16-month process that began in December 2006 when the airline signed a protocol agreement to join the grouping.

"With Turkish Airlines we have gained a new member carrier with a strong home market which is also one of the fastest growing economies in the world," Star CEO Jaan Albrecht said. THY brings 31 unique destinations to the alliance, mainly in Turkey, Central Asia and the Middle East, he said. Including THY, Star members operate 18,000 daily flights serving 965 airports in 162 countries.

"Joining the alliance is an important step for the airline's future," THY President and CEO Temel Kotil said. Membership will enable the carrier, which turns 75 this year, to become a much more active player in the global airline industry, he told assembled guests and media. Earlier, he said that THY intends to focus primarily on international connecting traffic, building Istanbul as a hub for east-west as well as north-south traffic.

"We believe long-haul should be connected to short-haul," Kotil explained, citing traffic flows from China to Africa and down to the Middle East. THY serves three cities in China, 16 in the Middle East and 10 in Africa. It carried 19.7 million passengers last year, up 23.5% over 2006, with a load factor of 73% and expects to carry 23.5 million in 2008. "The demand is there. All we need is the supply," he said, adding that THY needs to operate larger aircraft and is considering both the 777 and the A380.

Although it will not ignore the fast-growing domestic market where, he noted, "our share is going down," Kotil said the airline does not have big ambitions and will concentrate on capturing flow traffic into its international network. Earlier this week he revealed further plans for a low-fare airline unit, Anatolia Jet, that will operate domestically at least initially.