Turkish Airlines is hiring 500 foreign pilots and 2000 cabin crew staff

Turkish Airlines -THY is planning this year to hire 500 foreign pilots and 2.000 cabin crew so that it would respond to increasing growth demand, company GM, Temel Kotil said.

- It takes at least six years for a co-pilot to become a pilot – Kotil explained at the press conference.

He added that schools in Turkey satisfy the needs for co-pilots but not for pilots so they will have to look for this staff abroad, AFP reported.

During the recent years, this airline where Turkey has 49% stake, has been generating significant growth with an ambition to compete with the most successfully companies of the Persian Gulf, Etihad and Qatar Airways. Last year, Turkish Airlines transported je 54,7 million passengers which is 13,3% more than in 2013. It operates on 261 airports in 107 countries worldwide and in 2014, for the fourth year in a row, it won the title for the best airline company in Europe.

- This year we will additionally increase frequency of our flights and the number of destinations – Kotil said, outlining that their priority is the African continent for which in 2015 they are planning eight new destinations.

For current year, THY is planning to increase passengers’ number by 16% compared to 2014.