Majority of Turkish Airlines Foreign Pilots are Greek

Greeks make up the highest percentage of foreign pilots employed at Turkish Airlines, the company said in announcement on Sunday.

The 77 Greek captains of Turkish Airlines represent the highest percentage among approximately 800 foreign pilots (not counting those with Turkish citizenship) in the company.

“The rapid growth of Turkish Airlines led to the need of experienced aircraft pilots who could meet the strict standards and requirements of the organization… Among the 4,500 pilots in total, the Greek pilots are a considerable part of this critical professional class for Turkish Airlines”, the airline said.

According to the airline, the Greek pilots contribute with their knowledge and experience in a quick and safe transfer of hundreds of thousands passengers, almost in every place of the world that Turkish Airline’s network of 285 destinations covers.

“I am lucky for my cooperation with Turkish Airlines for many reasons”, said John Stavrianos who has been working as a pilot at Turkish Airlines for the last four years.

“It is close to Greece and it is easy for me to keep in touch with my family and my friends. I visit Greece even if I have one day off”, he added.

Mr Stavrianos also refered to the further development of Turkish Airlines. “When I joined the company, I remember that it has received the 200th airplane. Four years later, it has reached the number of 309  aircraft. This is about 50 percent increase, while the destinations we are able to fly to doubled. This is a definitely spectacular case.”