Universal establishes new ground support base in Istanbul

Universal Aviation, has opened Universal Aviation Turkey, based at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul to provide supervisory ground support for business aircraft at all airports across Turkey.
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The new operation is a partnership between Universal Aviation and local businesses Ferda Yildiz and Kaan Air.
The decision to expand into Turkey was based on increasing customer demand for operations into Turkey and better service levels on the ground that what has previously been available. The addition of Universal Aviation Turkey extends the Universal Aviation network to 18 locations in the Europe, Middle East and Africa Region.
“Turkey, and Istanbul in particular, is a rapidly growing business aviation market with good infrastructure and potential for growth, but it also continues to be a challenging destination for our customers due to service levels, parking availability and operating restrictions,” said Greg Evans, Universal’s chairman.
“Our clients told us they need faster response times and higher quality service on the ground, more transparency in pricing and quicker parking confirmations in Turkey. By directly providing ground supervision for our clients throughout Turkey, with our own professionals trained to our global standards, we are better positioned to reduce the inherent operating risks and ensure the success of their missions.”
With the opening of the new Istanbul Airport last year, all commercial airline traffic is now diverted from LTBA.
“We decided to base our Turkey headquarters at LTBA because it is now the best airport option for business aviation operators in Istanbul,” said Evans. “With no commercial traffic, arrivals, departure, and taxi times are significantly faster. LTBA is also much more conveniently located to Istanbul’s city center, and provides greater operational flexibility in terms of both parking, slots, scheduled maintenance options, and customer preference to the airport’s general aviation terminal.”
Universal in coordination with Ferda Yildiz and Kaan Air is also able to offer helicopter transport from airside to many destinations in the city or point to point for business meetings, avoiding the very challenging Istanbul traffic.
“Looking ahead, 2020, is going to be an exciting year of growth for Universal and our Universal Aviation network, as we continue to expand to high-risk, high-stress locations,” said Evans.