As per the carrier’s latest announcement, Turkish Airlines is planning to launch its tenth destination within Latin America, to Lima, the capital city of Peru. While the carrier has not provided additional details, other than its intent, this response can be attributed to the current trend of growing traffic demand between Latin America and European markets.

However, based on the carrier’s existing network within the region, it is possible the airline could potentially launch services to Lima via another Latin American gateway. This is because seven of the eight routes the carrier currently operates are flown with a tag at a tertiary destination, or in some cases, flown triangularly.

Turkish Planning For Lima, Peru

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While no specifics or details have been made available, the airline has expressed its intent to launch services to Lima Jorge Chavez International Airport (LIM), in the capital city of Peru. If this service is to come to fruition, it would be the airline’s tenth destination in the Latin American region. However, as the carrier states in its investors’ announcement, the launch of this service is “based on market conditions”.

According to Cirium, an aviation data analytics company, the airline currently operates flights to Bogota, Caracas, Cancun, Buenos Aires, Sao Paulo, Mexico City, Panama, and Santiago. During July, the airline will be operating up to ten flights a day across these eight gateways, with several flights being operated via Sao Paulo Airport (GRU). The following interactive map shows the carrier’s operations for the month of July:

Considering the distance and duration of these routes, the airline relies on its fleet of Boeing 787 Dreamliner jets, along with Airbus A350-900 widebody aircraft, for all its long-haul Latin American operations. Furthermore, as stated above, Turkish Airlines does have a ninth destination in the region, which is Havana, Cuba. However, due to the ongoing situation and lack of sufficient fuel to maintain efficient operations, the carrier has currently suspended service at this gateway.

Continued Ultra-Long Haul Ambitions

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It is worth noting that this is not the first time the carrier has expressed its interest in flying to Lima. In fact, various publications and records show the carrier has been interested in the Latin American gateway since 2024, when, according to Aviacionline, the carrier initially planned a service launch in June 2025. This is followed by other reports from 2025, still indicating the carrier’s interest in the Peruvian capital.

Data published by Aviation Week indicates that Turkish Airlines offers around 23,000 round-trip seats between Europe and Latin America, but compared to its competitors, the airline’s market share is relatively low, at 3%. The last route the carrier launched to the region was in December 2024, when Turkish added the onward connections to Santiago, Chile, from its existing services to Sao Paulo, Brazil.

While the airline’s services to Lima are yet to come to fruition, the carrier has successfully launched other ultra-long haul services during this period. This includes destinations in Australia, with the carrier flying to Sydney (four times weekly) and Melbourne (three times weekly), which the carrier operates via Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, respectively.

European Connectivity From Lima

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From Lima Airport’s perspective, if the service were to come to fruition, Turkish Airlines would become the sixth European carrier to launch services to Lima, and the airline’s hub, Istanbul Airport (IST), would become LIM’s fifth European destination it offers direct passenger connectivity to (only if Turkish opts to fly this service directly).

Other direct services between Lima and Europe include flights by Iberia, Plus Ultra, Air Europa, Air France, KLM, and LATAM. These services connect Lima to Madrid Airport (MAD), Barcelona Airport (BCN), Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS). The highest concentration of competition is faced on the LIM – MAD route, because Madrid acts as a major European gateway for Latin American services.

Meanwhile, LATAM remains the only Latin American carrier to offer direct flights to Europe from Lima. However, the airline’s European offerings are a lot more extensive from other airports across Latin America. However, as stated above, LATAM does face significant competition within the Europe – Latin America market, with European carriers such as Iberia accounting for 12.7% market share.