Less than a year after it became fully operational, Istanbul’s posh new airport is already vindicating critics who had argued that the project is irrational and would create a financial “black hole” and major environmental damage. The Justice and Development Party (AKP) government, which paid little heed to the concerns, is now openly bestowing favors to the airport to prop up its performance. To channel travelers to the new airport on Istanbul’s European side, the authorities have shut down the city’s iconic Ataturk Airport and are now raising barriers to restrict traffic at the Sabiha Gokcen Airport on the city’s Asian side.

The new Istanbul Airport has already seen its reputation suffer amid delays and diversions due to strong winds in the area, a problem that was exacerbated in early January. Yet passengers are increasingly being stripped of alternatives. 

The directorate-general of civil aviation, which is attached to the Transport and Infrastructure Ministry, announced last week that it would no longer accept applications to add new flights at Sabiha Gokcen Airport “to head off problems stemming from [the airport’s] inadequate capacity.” The statement also cited “ongoing maintenance work and heavy traffic.” 

Earlier, Turkish Airlines, the national flag carrier, terminated some of its domestic flights to and from Sabiha Gokcen, and handed international flights over to its subsidiary AnadoluJet. As a result, many Turkish Airlines flights were moved to the Istanbul Airport. Now, with authorities citing inadequate capacity at the Sabiha Gokcen, applications for new flights are being diverted to the Istanbul Airport in what is clearly favoritism.