Ankara Esenboğa Airport

Ankara Esenboğa Airport (IATA: ESB, ICAO: LTAC) is an international airport of Ankara, the capital city of Turkey. In 2017, the airport has served more than 15 million passengers in total, 13 million of which were domestic passengers. It ranked 4th in terms of total passenger traffic (after Atatürk Airport, Antalya Airport and Sabiha Gökçen International Airport), 3rd in terms of domestic passenger traffic (after Atatürk Airport and Sabiha Gökçen Airport) among airports in Turkey.^[3] The airport was ranked 22nd in the "100 Things That Give Hope in Turkey" list published in the 100th issue of Newsweek Turkey magazine.

Ankara Esenboğa Airport Ankara Esenboğa Havalimanı
IATA: ESB ICAO: LTAC
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	General Directorate of State Airports (DHMİ)
Operator	TAV Airports Holding
Serves	Ankara, Turkey
Opened	1955; 69 years ago (1955)
Hub for	AJet Pegasus Airlines
Elevation AMSL	3,125 ft / 953 m
Coordinates	40°07′41″N 032°59′42″E
Website	www.esenbogaairport.com
Map
ESB/LTAC Location within Turkey
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 03R/21L 3,750 12,303 Asphalt 03L/21R 3,750 12,303 Asphalt
Statistics (2017)
Passengers 15,845,878 Passenger change 2016–17 21% Aircraft movements 117,820 Movements change 2016–17 12%
Source: Turkish AIP at EUROCONTROL[1] Passenger Traffic, ACI Europe[2]

Overview

The airport is located northeast of Ankara, 28 km (17 mi) from the city center. The airport is connected with Kızılay (the city center) and Ankara Intercity Bus Terminal (Turkish: Ankara Şehirlerarası Terminal İşletmesi, AŞTİ) by EGO city bus number 442 (from 6 am to 11pm). Transportation to the city center is also by taxi (around TRY 900 one way, metered) and through the Havaş bus line (approximately TRY 120 one way). The road between Esenboğa airport and the Ankara ring road was expanded during the summer of 2006, decreasing the driving time between the city center and the airport by several minutes.

The name of the airport comes from the village of Esenboğa (the ğ is silent), which literally means "Windflowing Bull" or "Serene Bull", the modernized form of Isen Buqa, the name of a Turkic warlord in the army of Timur who settled his troops here during the Battle of Ankara in 1402.^[4]

Esenboğa International Airport was awarded as the best airport in Europe by ACI Europe (Airport Council International) and the award presented to airport officials on 17 June 2009 in Manchester. The award is given in 4 categories every year and Esenboğa was in 5–10 million per annum category. It is the first time an ACI award was granted to a Turkish Airport.^[5] According to ACI-Europe, "As with number of the top candidates in this category, the airport excels in all the keys areas of operations, however the judges singled it out for its work in the area of environmental innovation, securing an incredible 25% energy savings stemming from its recycling of exhaust gases to power its air conditioning plants." In 2020, Esenboğa Airport was awarded as the best European airport with a capacity of 15 – 25 million passengers by Airports Council International.^[6]

A new parallel runway is under construction to the east of the terminal building. Upon the completion, the current runway 03R/21L will be resigned as 03C/21C and the new runway will receive the latter's former designation.^[7]

Terminals

Esenboga Airport Domestic and International Terminal constructed under "Build-Operate-Transfer" model has been completed within a record time; a year earlier than the committed completion date. Esenboga Airport current Terminal, which went into operation on October 16, 2006 with a capacity of 10 million passengers, are spread over a 182,000 square metres (1,960,000 sq ft) area.^[8] A new general aviation terminal with 469 m² (5,048 sq ft) area has been opened in January 2012 to service private and business jets.

The new terminal, opened in 2006, feature 168,000 m² (1,808,337 sq ft) area, 10,000,000 passenger/year capacity, 18 ea. passenger bridges, 105 check-in counters, 34 passport counters, a parking facility with 123,000 m² (1,323,961 sq ft) area and 4,000 vehicles capacity.

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter flights at Ankara Esenboğa Airport:

Airlines	Destinations
Air Albania	Tirana[9]
Air Serbia	Seasonal: Belgrade[10]
AJet[11]	Adana/Mersin,[12] Adıyaman, Ağrı, Almaty,[13] Amman–Queen Alia, Amsterdam, Antalya, Astana, Baghdad,[14] Baku, Batman, Beirut, Belgrade, Berlin, Bingöl, Bishkek,[15] Bodrum, Bursa, Çanakkale, Dalaman, Diyarbakır, Dubai–International,[16] Düsseldorf, Edremit, Elazığ, Ercan, Erzincan, Erzurum, Frankfurt, Gaziantep, Gazipaşa/Alanya, Hakkari, Hatay, Iğdır, Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen, İzmir, Kahramanmaraş, Kars, London–Stansted, Malatya, Mardin, Moscow–Vnukovo, Muş, Ordu/Giresun, Paris–Charles de Gaulle, Rize/Artvin,[17] Samsun, Şanlıurfa, Siirt, Şırnak, Tashkent,[18] Tehran–Imam Khomeini, Tokat, Trabzon, Van, Vienna Seasonal: Brussels,[19] Cologne/Bonn, Hamburg, Munich, Stockholm–Arlanda, Stuttgart[20]
Ariana Afghan Airlines	Kabul
Azerbaijan Airlines	Baku
Caspian Airlines	Tabriz, Tehran–Imam Khomeini
Corendon Airlines[21]	Seasonal: Cologne/Bonn,[22] Düsseldorf,[22] Nuremberg[22]
FlyArystan	Astana
Fly Baghdad	Baghdad, Erbil
flydubai	Dubai–International[23]
Fly Kıbrıs Airlines	Ercan
Flynas	Jeddah, Medina
Iraqi Airways	Baghdad, Erbil, Kirkuk[24]
Kam Air	Kabul
Mahan Air	Tehran–Imam Khomeini
Pegasus Airlines	Almaty,[25] Amman–Queen Alia, Antalya, Bodrum, Bucharest–Otopeni,[26] Cologne/Bonn, Çorlu, Dubai–International, Dublin,[27] Düsseldorf, Erbil, Ercan, Frankfurt, Hamburg,[28] Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen, İzmir,[29] Kraków, London–Stansted, Sharjah, Stockholm–Arlanda,[30] Stuttgart, Tbilisi,[31] Tehran–Imam Khomeini, Vienna, Warsaw–Chopin Seasonal: Berlin, Copenhagen (begins 7 November 2024),[32] Lisbon,[33] Moscow–Domodedovo[29]
Qatar Airways	Doha
Qeshm Air	Tehran–Imam Khomeini
Saudia	Jeddah, Medina
Sepehran Airlines	Tehran–Imam Khomeini[34]
SunExpress[35]	Düsseldorf,[36] Frankfurt, Hannover, Munich[37] Seasonal: Amsterdam, Berlin,[38] Brussels, Cologne/Bonn,[39] Copenhagen,[40] Hamburg,[38] Stockholm–Arlanda,[38] Stuttgart, Tbilisi,[41] Vienna, Zürich
Transavia	Paris–Orly[42]
Turkish Airlines	Istanbul Seasonal: Jeddah, Medina
UR Airlines	Baghdad[43]
Uzbekistan Airways	Tashkent[44]

Statistics

Interior view

Interior view

Passengers

Annual passenger traffic at ESB airport. See Wikidata query.

Ankara Esenboğa International Airport Passenger Traffic Statistics^[3]

Year	Domestic	% change	International	% change	Total	% change
2023	9,090,436	35%	2,823,646	47%	11,914,082	37%
2022	6,742,033	18%	1,902,934	46%	8,644,967	23%
2021	5,727,199	30%	1,298,976	74%	7,026,175	36%
2020	4,415,805	61%	746,764	67%	5,162,569	62%
2019	11,417,759	21%	2,275,195	1%	13,692,954	18%
2018	14,498,102	5%	2,241,901	13%	16,740,003	6%
2017	13,828,365	20%	1,988,793	33%	15,817,158	21%
2016	11,554,882	9%	1,488,095	4%	13,042,977	8%
2015	10,562,282	10%	1,551,157	7%	12,113,439	10%
2014	9,591,350	2%	1,444,256	8%	11,035,606	1%
2013	9,369,832	22%	1,572,228	1%	10,942,060	18%
2012	7,679,371	9%	1,593,737	13%	9,273,108	9%
2011	7,080,072	10%	1,405,395	6%	8,485,467	9%
2010	6,435,211	29%	1,328,693	21%	7,763,914	28%
2009	4,990,134	12%	1,094,270	12%	6,084,404	7%
2008	4,444,311	23%	1,247,822	8%	5,692,133	15%
2007	3,609,122	10%	1,349,006	7%	4,958,128	9%
2006	3,287,585	25%	1,259,993	6%	4,547,578	19%
2005	2,640,604	23%	1,189,250	5%	3,829,854	17%
2004	2,141,047	21%	1,134,678	12%	3,275,725	18%
2003	1,773,531	2%	1,010,396	1%	2,783,927	2%
2002	1,814,563		1,022,065		2,836,628

Movements

Ankara Esenboğa International Airport Aircraft Movement Statistics

Year	Domestic	% change	International	% change	Total	% change
2023	59,992	31%	20,433	39%	80,425	33%
2022	45,734	5%	14,716	24%	60,450	9%
2015	82,852	5%	15,758	0.3%	98,610	4%
2014	78,712	2%	15,706	6%	94,421	2%
2013	80,107	16%	16,711	1%	96,818	13%
2012	69,335	3%	16,548	7%	85,883	4%
2011	67,513	14%	15,452	7%	82,965	12%
2010	59,509	18%	14,420	18%	73,929	18%
2009	50,347	4%	12,273	15%	62,620	0.4%
2008	48,463	2%	14,396	12%	62,859	2%
2007	47,578		16,331		63,909

Other facilities

• The airport is the head office of AnadoluJet.^[45]
• Esenboğa Airport was designated as one of the emergency landing sites for NASA's Space Shuttle.^[46]

Aviation accidents and incidents at or near the airport

• Scandinavian Airlines System Flight 871
• Turkish Airlines Flight 835
• 1964 Turkish Airlines Ankara crash
• 1979 Turkish Airlines Ankara crash
• Ankara Esenboğa Airport attack
• Turkish Airlines Flight 158

Other airports in Ankara

There are three military airports in Ankara as follows:

• Akıncı Air Base
• Etimesgut Air Base
• Güvercinlik Army Air Base

See also

• List of the busiest airports in the Middle East
• 2024 Russian prisoner exchange

References

1. EAD Basic. Ead.eurocontrol.int. Retrieved on 2011-08-01.
2. "ACI EUROPE Airport Traffic Report. December, Q4 and Full Year 2015" (PDF). Retrieved 28 August 2016.
3. Müdürlüğü, DHMİ Genel. "Devlet Hava Meydanları İşletmesi Genel Müdürlüğü". www.dhmi.gov.tr. Archived from the original on 28 June 2015. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
4. Bardakçi, Murat (31 December 2000). "Murat Bardakçı: Esenboğa, 600 yıllık bir hezîmetin adıdır". Retrieved 11 January 2018.
5. "ACI EUROPE Best Airport Award winners for 2009 announced" (PDF). Retrieved 8 June 2023.^{[permanent dead link]}
6. "ACI reveals world's best airports for customer experience". Airports Council International. 9 March 2020. Archived from the original on 5 May 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
7. "General Directorate of State Airports Authority".
8. "ANKARA ESENBOĞA AIRPORT". www.esenbogaairport.com. Archived from the original on 12 December 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2014.
9. "Air Albania nis nga prilli fluturimet në Ankara e Izmir! Rihap dhe fluturimet në Bolonja, Pisa e Verona".
10. "Air Serbia reveals third set of new routes". 8 December 2022.
11. "Flight Schedule". anadolujet.com.
12. "10 Ağustos'ta Adana Şakirpaşa Havalimanı kapatılıyor! Uçuşlar yeni havalimanına aktarılacak". 3 August 2024.
13. "AnadoluJet Adds Ankara – Kazakhstan Routes in NW22".
14. "Turkish Airlines adds Ankara – Baghdad service in S19". Archived from the original on 22 January 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
15. "✅ ✈️️ Fly with Most Affordable and Cheap Ticket Opportunities | AnadoluJet". www.anadolujet.com. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
16. "Flight VF549". Flightradar24.
17. "✅ ✈️️ Fly with Most Affordable and Cheap Ticket Opportunities | AnadoluJet".
18. "ANADOLUJET ADDS ANKARA – TASHKENT SERVICE FROM MID-APRIL 2023". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
19. "News for Airlines, Airports and the Aviation Industry | CAPA".
20. "✅ ✈️️ Fly with Most Affordable and Cheap Ticket Opportunities | AnadoluJet".
21. "Corendon Ankara Flight Plan" (PDF). corendonairlines.com.
22. "CORENDON AIRLINES NW22 SCHEDULED SERVICE ADJUSTMENT – 20OCT22". aeroroutes.com. 20 October 2022.
23. Release, Press. "Ankara becomes the latest destination to join the flydubai network". www.zawya.com. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
24. "Iraqi Airways Begins Kirkuk – Turkey Service From Nov 2022". Aeroroutes. 31 October 2022.
25. "Pegasus Adds Ankara – Almaty Service from Nov 2022".
26. Bobon, Gabriel (13 July 2022). "New route: Bucharest - Ankara with Pegasus Airlines from August 2022".
27. "Pegasus launches Ankara to Dublin route". 16 May 2024. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
28. "Pegasus adds Hamburg / Rotterdam service in W18". routesonline.com. Retrieved 28 October 2018.
29. "PEGASUS NS23 NETWORK ADDITIONS – 16APR23". aeroroutes.com. 18 April 2023.
30. "Pegasus Resumes Ankara – Stockholm Service from Nov 2022".
31. "Schedule". Flypgs.com.
32. "Pegasus NW24 Network Additions – 11SEP24". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 12 September 2024.
33. "Pegasus Website". flypgs.com. ^{[not specific enough to verify]}
34. "Sepehran Airlines launches new route between Tehran and Ankara". 15 October 2023.
35. Liu, Jim (3 September 2020). "SunExpress 01-19SEP20 International operations as of 30AUG20". routesonline.com.
36. "SunExpress Germany S19 network additions as of 18OCT18". routesonline.com.
37. "SunExpress adds Ankara – Munich route from late-Oct 2018".
38. "SUNEXPRESS NS23 NETWORK ADDITIONS – 30OCT22". aeroroutes.com. 31 October 2022.
39. "SunExpress S19 network additions as of 18OCT18". routesonline.com.
40. Casey, David. "SunExpress Schedules New Summer Routes". Routesonline. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
41. "SunExpress NS23 Routes Addition Summary – 22NOV22".
42. Flight Search Transavia
43. Liu, Jim. "UR Airlines files S20 network". Routesonline. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
44. "Uzbekistan Airways Schedules Ankara Launch in Nov 2023". AeroRoutes. 19 September 2023. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
45. "Contact Us Archived 2012-01-02 at the Wayback Machine." AnadoluJet. Retrieved on 24 December 2011. "Address: Esenboğa Havalimanı İdari Kat E Adası Anadolu Jet Ofisleri - ANKARA" - Turkish page Archived 2012-05-29 at the Wayback Machine
46. Pike, John. "SPACE SHUTTLE EMERGENCY LANDING SITES". www.globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 11 January 2018.

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

External links

• Official website
• Accident history for ESB at Aviation Safety Network
• Airport information for LTAC at Great Circle Mapper.
• Current weather for LTAC at NOAA/NWS