AtlasGlobal, Turkish airline with headquarters in Istanbul, is suspending flights until mid-December 2019, due to difficult financial situation.
The airline announced the halt of operations on November 26, 2019, advising its passengers that all flights are suspended until December 21, 2019. “As per the decision taken by our airline, we have entered a new phase of restructuring in order to provide you a unique flight experience,” the airline’s website warns passengers.
AtlasGlobal was unable to compensense for 2016/2017 losses in “sufficient time” and is halting flights to improve its cash flow, the airline explains in a statement sent to Turkish media.
The airline’s commercial problems date back to 2015-2016, when Turkey’s tourism sector was hit by “terrorist incidents” and a coup attempt, according to the statement. Later, at the beginning of 2018, it also suffered from currency fluctuations and decrease in demand.
“[…] The recent past negativity and the economic burden it brought along with the increase in logistics and operational costs with the transition to Istanbul Airport as of April 2019 have eliminated the possibility of compensating our 2016/2017 losses in sufficient time for our airline,” is written in the statement.
AtlasGlobal operated an all-Airbus fleet of 11 leased aircraft, according to planespotters.net data. Other sources put the total number of aircraft in AtlasGlobal fleet between 16 and 18 jets.
The last 6 #Atlasglobal flights returning to Istanbul New Airport. The airline suspended operations until Dec 21, 2019. pic.twitter.com/QygcIWOAdb
— Turkish Air News (@AnalystTK) November 26, 2019