On 17 April DHMI (the Turkish ANSP) and iGA Istanbul Airport inaugurated triple runway operations with the simultaneous take-off of three Turkish Airlines aircraft on independent runways. The new operational procedures allow the airport to increase its hourly air traffic capacity from 120 to 148 movements, supporting iGA Istanbul Airport’s vision of accommodating its target of 200 million passengers.
The operation was officially launched by the Turkish Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, who issued the first command to Turkish Airlines pilots directly from the ATC tower, enabling the simultaneous take-off of three scheduled flights.
This operational transformation enhances traffic management in Istanbul, while the additional 28 aircraft movements per hour result in shorter waiting times for airlines, fewer delays for passengers and lower carbon emissions.
EUROCONTROL teams contributed to this achievement through the simulation and safety study conducted last year at the EUROCONTROL Innovation Hub.
The transformation process began in 2022 when the General Directorate of State Airports Authority (DHMI) kicked off a comprehensive safety analysis and airspace design process in close cooperation with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (SHGM), iGA Istanbul Airport, Turkish Airlines (THY), EUROCONTROL and other international authorities.
In January and March 2024, DHMI controllers and Turkish Airlines pilots came to the EUROCONTROL Innovation Hub to simulate and test new procedures for simultaneous, independent landings and take-offs on three runways using our ATC and A320 cockpit simulators.
The simulation project, which took several months to prepare and execute, saw EUROCONTROL experts from EIH and our Network Management Safety Unit work closely with DHMI teams and introduce more than 80 air traffic controllers and several pilots to the new procedures, which allowed us to collect invaluable feedback in support of the Operational Safety Assessment study that followed.
One of the unique aspects of the simulation was to test non-nominal cases that could occur in triple runway operations. A new “scenario manager” position was introduced to disrupt regular traffic flow by introducing deviations in aircraft trajectories (climb or descend, turn, increase or decrease speed, adjust rate of descent, conduct missed approaches, etc.), measure the reactions of air traffic controllers and pilots, and assess and possibly improve the related procedures.
