Turkish Airlines Denied Me to Board and I Experienced Inconvenience
On November 6, 2023, I had a flight ticket from Antalya to Sarajevo with a layover in Istanbul. The flight codes were TK2431 for Antalya-Istanbul and TK1023 for Istanbul-Sarajevo.
I arrived at Antalya Airport on time and obtained boarding passes for both flights. After completing my Antalya-Istanbul flight, I proceeded through passport control to board the Sarajevo flight. At the gate, the staff collected passports and boarding passes before boarding began, which was unusual. They asked me the purpose of my travel and if I had a return ticket. I showed them my return ticket from another airline. However, the staff informed me that I needed a round-trip ticket issued under the same PNR, as required by Bosnia and Herzegovina. When I asked where this rule was documented, no written rule or document was provided. Ultimately, I was not allowed to board the plane.
Neither the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website nor the THY updated visa rules section mentions this requirement. On November 7, 2023, I called the Bosnia and Herzegovina Istanbul Consulate at 0212 236 68 92, and the representative confirmed that there is no such requirement for Turkish citizens. When purchasing my ticket, the system did not provide any note indicating this rule. For example, such a rule is mentioned for flights to Montenegro.
If this rule had been communicated to me via email or displayed in the system while purchasing the ticket, I would have acted accordingly, or if the staff at Antalya Airport had informed me, I would not have taken the first leg of the flight. Due to this situation, my entire vacation plan was ruined, and my hotel reservations were wasted. I request compensation from THY for my financial and emotional damages.
