In the early days I often flew by foreign airlines when going to destinations not served by THY. Then, when THY began to fly almost everywhere I needed to go, and also because of THY’s warmer hospitality, I continued to fly by ‘my aircraft’. Fifty years is a long time. I never once experienced fear of flying, for which I must thank all the captains with whom I flew. What is more, over that fifty years ‘my aircraft’ came to match those of foreign airlines where technology was concerned, and outdid them in terms of service and catering.

In the early days of television, most of the programmes were broadcast from Ankara, so I had to travel to the capital every week... by air of course. Then as a sports commentator, I started to go abroad more often, and I was delighted to be able to fly by Turkish aircraft. Why? Because I always felt ‘at home’.
When I flew to Portugal with the national team in 1965, we were welcomed with an exuberant ceremony in Lisbon.

What is more, I have always believed that flying is far safer than travelling by road or sea, and it was THY which convinced me of this. Fifty years is quite a long time. If you like I will write it in capitals, too: FIFTY YEARS. Almost a lifetime.

Now as I celebrate my fifty years as an air passenger, THY is happy and proud to be celebrating its 67th anniversary. ‘Proud’ is a word that is bandied about a lot these days. Every one declares themselves ‘proud’ of this, that, or someone, without thinking whether the occasion or the person really merits the word. But I use it deliberately. On the basis of fifty years of shared experience I can confidently tell Turkish Airlines, ‘The Turkish people, and above all Turkish air passengers, are proud of your performance in the skies, whether blue or cloudy, which Atatürk declared was where the future lay.’

Halit Kivanç is a journalist