Flying from Istanbul (IST) to Antalya

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Istanbul_Atat%C3%BCrk_Airport

Istanbul Atatürk Airport (IST) (İstanbul Atatürk Havalimanı) was until recently the main international airport serving Istanbul. It was named after Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (1881-1938), the founder and first president of the Republic of Turkey. I frequently flew through IST between Europe and my home in Muscat, Oman, or to vacation in Turkey. 

http://www.constructionweekonline.com/pictures/Aldar/ataturk-airport.jpg

For you airplane buffs: IST had three runways:

• 05/23 - pointing to the 1:00 o'clock position. I landed on this runway every time - coming in low over the Sea of Marmara. (See 2nd video below)
• 18L/36R and 18R/36L - they run parallel, toward the 10 o'clock position. This one was always used for take-off.

The prevailing winds here come mainly from the north.

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Check-out this video of a beautiful approach over the Sea of Marmara circling in front of the IST airport in order to land 10 minutes later. Expand to full screen for best effect.

This video shows approach to land at IST over the Sea of Marmara. Expand screen for best effect.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Istanbul_Atat%C3%BCrk_Airport#mediaviewer/File:Turkish_Airlines_Boeing_777-300ER_TC-JJI_IST_2012-11-24.png

IST is located in Yeşilköy, on the Sea of Marmara, 15 miles (24 km) west of the city center.  A second airport (Sabiha Gökçen International Airport), located on the Asian side, also served the greater metropolitan area, which has a total population of 13.2 million.

http://wahyuinqatar.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/istanbul_districts_map.png

This is passenger Arrivals and Departure area of the International Terminal.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Istanbul_Atat%C3%BCrk_Airport#mediaviewer/File:Ataturk_airport_Istanbul_01589.jpg

A terrorist attack was carried out on this exact spot on the day I was scheduled to arrive and depart here for Berlin - Tuesday, 28 June, 2016. Click here and here (graphic detail).

http://resize.khabarindiatv.com/resize/newbucket/660_-/2016/06/turkey-airport6-1467182390.jpg

Flights in the air were diverted to other airports. My 12:30 am flight out of Oman was kept on the ground and rescheduled for the next day at noon. Everything was cleaned-up by then, as it was Hadj season, and the Turks wanted to have everything back in order.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/06/29/europe/turkey-istanbul-ataturk-airport-attack/

Here's an Airbus 340-300. I flew on one of these many times in- and out of the Middle East for 8 years, especially with Lufthansa flying from Denver to Frankfurt, and then Frankfurt to Dubai/Muscat.



http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=istanbul+airport&view=detailv2&id=6186CF5FC48416FCF8F34BEC0D7A5AB0A8EE3219&selectedindex=20&ccid=Bdhd9PqC&simid=608053064130562892&thid=OIP.M05d85df4fa82f9441083a1b6e2b29c8ao0&mode=overlay&first=1

Video: It's common to see Hadj groups passing through the Istanbul airport on their way to Mecca, in this case, in November, 2014. (Click to enlarge.)

The Turks are now  building a larger airport near the Black Sea (Karadeniz):

Turkey awards contract for third Istanbul airport
by Construction Week Online Staff on May 8, 2013 

The existing Ataturk Airport in Istanbul is hemmed in by development and cannot expand.
Turkey began construction on the new Istanbul airport in 2014 with a bid of $29 Billion.
It is set to be the largest airport in the world!

Expected figures for the new airport:

• 90 million passengers/year anticipated by 2017 (after Phase 1, costing $10 Billion) 
• 150 million travelers/year (at completion)
• The country hopes to have one of the top 10 economies of the world (GDP $2 trillion, up from $782 Billion currently). It was 17th in 2019 with $743.

http://www.constructionweekonline.com/article-22306-turkey-awards-contract-for-third-istanbul-airport/

Here are some artist's concept pictures of the new airport, scheduled to be completed in February, 2018.

http://www.spiegel.de/fotostrecke/neuer-istanbuler-flughafen-eine-tulpe-als-kontrollturm-fotostrecke-134725.html

...and an actual aerial photo during construction:

https://pbase.com/dosseman/istanbul_turkey

Below: a view of the Sea of Marmara region looking south-west, over the Black Sea. In the center-left is the Sea of Marmara, which connects to the Black Sea with a narrow channel - the Bosphorus - passing by Istanbul. Beyond are the Aegean Sea and Greek islands.

http://earth.imagico.de/large.php?site=bosporus1

Istanbul is located on the Bosporus close to the Sea of Marmara on the European side.
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IST Take-off Video, March 2014 (below): 
I made this video as my Turkish Airlines 737 aircraft climbed out of IST airport and turned east - over Istanbul. I was on a starboard / right side window. You can see the following at:
1:18 - Motorway E5 
2:00 - the Prince Islands (Adalar) 
2:14 - three bridges over the Golden Horn, and Sultanahmet  
2:50 - the Prince Islands and the Asian side
2:57 - large skyscrapers near Taksim Square and Gezi Park, site of the now-famous riots of 2013-14.
3:10 - Sultanahmet and the Golden Horn

Marked on the map below is the approximate path I flew that day:

Here are five photos I took from the aircraft, looking basically south, as we rose through the mist into the clouds. The two Bridges, Galata (photo) and the Atatürk (photo) link the Sultanahmet to Istanbul's north side, crossing the Golden Horn.

Cliff_Emerson©

Below is panorama of Seraglio Point on the Sultanahmet peninsula. In the distance you can see the Asian side of Istanbul (left) and the mountains of the Prince Islands (right). Intermingled with the trees on the peninsula is the Topkapi Palace complex; right-of-center is the Hagia Sophia, and on the right is the Blue Mosque.

http://static.panoramio.com/photos/large/1027824.jpg

Above: Most of the green area of the peninsula (Sultanahmet) is composed of trees in the foreground, and the Topkapi Palace grounds behind it.

My photo (looking south) below clearly shows all three bodies of water:

• the Sea of Marmara (upper, middle),
• Golden Horn (right), and
• the Bosporus (left).

Cliff_Emerson©

Topkapi Palace Grounds

https://www.islamiclandmarks.com/turkey/topkapi-palace

Cliff_Emerson©

The Bosporus is spanned by the the first Bosporus Bridge (Boğaziçi Köprüsü) (photo). Built in 1973, it is one of the world's longest single-span bridges, at 3,525 feet (1,074 meters).

Cliff_Emerson©

Cargo, military and  tourist cruise ships pass between the Black Sea and Mediterranean Sea through the Bosporus. The Russians must pass through this narrow area to get in and out of the Crimea.

Cliff_Emerson©

Finally, below you can see the E5 Motorway passing over the Bosporus Bridge, as we disappear into the clouds over the Asian side.

Cliff_Emerson

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I flew southward across western Turkey on this trip, with a laminated topographic map in hand (scanned, below) - now prerequisites when I fly over Turkey - you don't want to miss identifying things from the air!

The map came from an old German GEO magazine. It guided me across valleys and mountainous terrain on my way south to the Mediterranean. I've marked an approximate travel route from Istanbul to my destination, Antalya:

GEO Zeitung

In case you need to orient yourself better to Turkey, click on this link for a country-sized geography map.

Here, you see two snow-capped mountains, with a lake, near Isparta.

Cliff_Emerson©

Same mountains and lake - different angle - further to the south.

Cliff_Emerson©

Alexander the Great and his army came through this same territory after crossing the Dardanelles and fighting at the Battle of Granicus, in May 334 BC. 

He went south along the western coast of Turkey (Priene, Bodrum, Ephesus) and then along the southern coast, past modern-day Antalya and Side, and northward - up to the region of Gordion (Gordion's Knot). After going through Ankara, his army went down to meet Darius III in the Battle of Issus, on his way to the Persia, in 334 BCE.

During my descent toward Antalya; the aircraft allowed me to look more closely at features on the ground. The topography is less rugged and arid, with fields and forests, including several clear-cut areas.

Cliff_Emerson©

Paul and Barnabas trekked through this area on their way from the port city of Perga to Antioch in Pisidia [map below, blue line]. Thereafter, they went eastward to the ancient cities of Iconium, Lystra and Derbe, and returned on basically the same route to Attalia [gold line]. (First Missionary Journey: Acts 13:1-14:27, about 46-48 CE)

http://www.teach4god.com/NTS/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Pauls-First-and-Second-Missionary-Journey.jpeg

Final approach traveling southward to the Antalya Airport. Mountains are replaced by farmland, including a large number of greenhouses. This view looks straight west.

Cliff_Emerson©

This is a view of the Antalya Airport (ATY) from the north - in the direction I landed - toward the Mediterranean Sea.

And below, the view is turned 180-degrees, looking north, toward Istanbul. It's interesting to see how the Duden Waterfalls...

...and the large apartment buildings are basically in the flight path.

 

Finally, looking to the west on this north-bound approach, you can barely see the Bay of Antalya and coastal mountains of the Beydarglari Range through the clouds. On this visit, I visited the archaeological ruins of Termessos, located in these mountains.

http://www.jo-igele.de/flug-stgt-antalya-mit-tuifly-das-geht-besser/

Additional entries on this website:
Click here to go back to my first Web entry for Side: "Visit to Side #1"
Click here for:  "Paul's First Journey - Part 2: Traveling from Cyprus to Southern Turkey"
Click here for:  "Siege of Constantinople 1453 - Part #1"

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