Turkish Airlines Denied Me to Board Citing Visa Issues
On 11/09/2023 at 08:20, I had a connecting flight from Istanbul to Helsinki to Tokyo, which I purchased via Finnair on 28/04/2023. The Istanbul-Helsinki part was operated by Turkish Airlines. Previously, when I contacted Finnair about the transit visa, they directed me to consult the consulate. I emailed the Finnish Consulate and received a response from the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs stating that Turkish citizens do not require a transit visa. I printed this email, along with my round-trip tickets purchased via Finnair, and a signed and stamped official letter from my company, where I have been employed for 5 years, confirming my return to avoid any suspicion of asylum. I went to Istanbul Airport with these documents. My Istanbul-Helsinki and Helsinki-Tokyo boarding passes were issued to me. Upon arriving at the boarding gate before the departure time, the Turkish Airlines ground staff requested my passport, stating they needed to share it with the Finnish border police via WhatsApp. I cooperated and handed over my passport. I also requested the TGS staff to share my documents with the police to prove I had no intention of seeking asylum, but they laughed and said such documents were useless and that I would not be allowed to board anyway. Subsequently, I received a message via WhatsApp that the police did not want me to board the transit flight, and the Turkish Airlines staff did not let me board. As a result, I missed all my connecting flights. To avoid canceling my vacation, I purchased a ticket for the Istanbul-Seoul-Tokyo flight departing the same day and arrived in Tokyo on 12/09/2023. During this process, neither the Korean police nor the Japanese police at my final destination turned me back. Due to this issue, my vacation was shortened by three days, and I incurred additional expenses for the new ticket. Despite submitting a complaint on the Turkish Airlines website, I have not received any response. I demand a resolution to this issue as soon as possible and will pursue my rights through all legal means.
