Turkish envoy to push Turkey-RP flight

CEBU CITY – Turkish Ambassador to the Philippines Adnan Basaga said he will convince leading airline operators in Turkey to start operating routes between their country and the Philippines upon finalization of the Civil Aviation Agreement (CAA) between the two nations.

“I’ll do my best to convince Turkish airlines to fly to the Philippines. We are now in the stage of finalizing (the CAA) but the most important part is to fulfill the CAA and then build on the commercial talks between airline companies,” he said in an interview.

He bared Turkish airline representatives have already started visiting Manila to explore feasible flight opportunities between Turkey and the Philippines.

One positive outcome of the visit, Basaga noted, was the establishment of a Turkish airline ticketing office in Manila.

“Turkish airlines fly to most key destinations in the world but not to the Philippines. I see great opportunities here, especially in the facilities. The Filipinos can use the hub-point of Istanbul as a gateway to Europe through direct flights from Manila,” the ambassador said.

“It doesn’t matter whether its Philippine airlines or Turkish airlines that comes first but as long as there is a direct flight. I hope that before I leave the Philippines, I will receive a Turkish airline in (my office in) Manila,” he added.

Basaga said Turkey could very well capitalize on the growing tourism industry of the Philippines and opening a direct or even a chartered flight here could jumpstart more economic cooperation between the two countries.

“Tourism, in this day, is one of the main keys in putting nations together and understanding each other,” he said.

In the area of tourism, Cebu plays many advantages, said Basaga, citing the hospitality of Cebuanos, good command of the English language and the availability of international flights here.

Cebu’s tourist destinations, especially its hotel resorts, which is open the whole year round, is another bonus.

“In Turkey, we have beaches but we have snow up to seven months a year,” Basaga said, indicating that Cebu can cater to Turkey’s growing leisure market travelers.

On the other hand, Cebuanos, and Filipinos in general, can benefit on Turkey for religious tourism or as a site for Christian pilgrimages.

Although 98 percent of Turks are Muslims, the country boasts of several Christian churches, including the famous historical site of the House of the Virgin Mary, said Basaga.

Citing official records, he said Turkey, with a 78 million population, hosts 22 million tourists every year, making it one of the world’s top 10 foreign tourist destinations. #

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