Turkish Airlines and Air China have signed an agreement expanding their codeshare partnership to cover all direct trunk routes between Türkiye and China, along with selected onward services beyond both countries' hubs, the airlines said in a press release dated Sept 17.

The agreement was signed at the opening ceremony of the 4th China Air Transport Association (CATA) Aviation Conference & Exhibition in Beijing, according to the release.

It builds on a freesale codeshare arrangement introduced in June 2024, which initially covered only flights between Istanbul and Beijing. The expanded deal adds all direct trunk routes between the two countries, selected domestic services beyond Beijing and international services beyond Istanbul.

Turkish Airlines passengers will be able to connect beyond Beijing to more destinations in mainland China, including Shenzhen, Chongqing, Xiamen, Hangzhou, Nanjing and Qingdao, the airlines said.

Air China passengers will gain onward connections through Istanbul to Ankara, and to destinations in Africa and Latin America served by Turkish Airlines. The African points named are Accra, Lagos, Marrakesh, Dar es Salaam, Algiers and Tunis. The Latin American destinations are Cancun and Mexico City.

Flights across both networks can be booked on a single ticket, giving passengers more choice and smoother connections between China, Türkiye and beyond, the release said. The airlines are both members of Star Alliance, and connectivity and transfer services between their hubs have improved steadily, it added.

The two carriers plan to extend the codeshare to newly launched direct routes between Türkiye and China, the release said. It described the partnership as strategic and aimed at supporting closer trade, tourism and cultural ties between the two countries. No financial terms or start date for the expanded services were disclosed.

Source: PR