Turkish Airlines Flight Cancellation and Passenger Rights Issues
On October 10, 2023, at 21:10, we had an Anadolu Jet flight from Izmir to Ankara. At 19:15, I received an SMS indicating a delay of 2 hours and 20 minutes. While waiting at the airport, I received another SMS at 21:10 stating that the flight was canceled. Everyone was directed to the sales office. The sales office informed us that they could send us to Istanbul on the 01:00 flight on October 11, and then to Ankara at 06:00, requiring an additional 3 hours wait at Izmir airport and 5 hours at Istanbul airport. My original arrival time was supposed to be 22:20 on October 10, but it became 07:30 on October 11. After 9 hours of suffering, I finally reached Ankara. We requested hotel and transportation, and asked to fly on October 11, but it was not accepted. We paid for the flight, additional parking fees, and food at Istanbul airport, and were left in a miserable state. All our plans for the next day were ruined. We mentioned passenger rights and the need for hotel and transportation, but were told that there was nothing else they could do other than the 9-hour journey via Istanbul. No airline should take longer than a bus and make passengers spend extra money. THY is not a global brand but one that causes suffering to its own citizens. Even elderly and disabled passengers who raised their voices saw no change. Both laws and human dignity were disregarded.
