Turkish Airlines Flight Academy signed a purchase agreement for 10 Cessna Skyhawk aircraft from Textron Aviation to bolster its training capacity. The deal, confirmed on April 23, 2026, at AERO Friedrichshafen in Germany, targets growing demand for pilots across Europe.
Deliveries start late 2026, with the first aircraft arriving then and the remaining nine through 2027. This expansion equips the academy to train more pilots for Turkish Airlines’ expanding fleet amid industry-wide shortages.
The Cessna 172 Skyhawk, a staple for ab initio training, matches the academy’s existing simulators, including recent AL172 units replicating its cockpit. Turkish Airlines Flight Academy already operates a Cessna 172S fleet, logging over 31,000 airplane flight hours in 2022.
This order underscores Turkish Airlines’ strategy to secure in-house pilot supply, reducing reliance on external programs as its mainline operations grow rapidly. The move aligns with global trends, like ATP Flight School’s large Skyhawk purchases for similar training needs.