I don’t want to bury the lede — in posts, I often reference how Turkish Airlines flies to more countries than any other airline in the world. However, how many countries does the airline actually fly to, and how far ahead of competitors is Turkish Airlines? I thought that would be interesting to explore…
Turkish Airlines flies to 117 countries around the globe
Turkish Airlines has the record for flying to more countries than any other airline in the world. That has been the case for a long time, and in late 2024, the Star Alliance carrier made it official, with a Guinness World Record in the category of “most countries flown to by an airline.” The airline has flown to more countries than any other airline since 2012, and has a sizable lead over competitors.
Just how many countries does Turkish Airlines fly to? This is where it always gets tricky as to what you count. If you count active flights operating at the moment, the airline flies to 117 countries. However:
- When Turkish Airlines got its Guinness World Record a couple of years back, it was for flying to 120 countries, reflecting routes that had been active over the 12 months prior to that
- When factoring in routes that were temporarily suspended in late 2024, the airline served up to 131 countries
As you’d expect, when you’re an airline serving virtually every corner of the globe, there will always be some suspended services due to geopolitical factors, etc. What’s cool is that Turkish Airlines is also far from done with its expansion, as the airline still has big growth plans. It’ll be fascinating to see just how many countries the airline eventually serves.
Turkish Airlines has a 30+ country lead over other airlines
What’s perhaps most impressive about Turkish Airlines’ record for serving the most countries is just how far ahead of competitors the airline is. Turkish Airlines is 30+ countries ahead of the next airline when it comes to countries served.
Does anyone want to take a guess as to which airlines are next on the list? Here are a few general thoughts that come to mind:
- Airlines in the Middle East (or between what we traditionally think of as Europe and Asia) have a huge advantage, since they can serve countries east, south, and west that aren’t too far
- Europe has dozens of countries in close proximity, so that’s an easy way to serve lots of countries
- An extensive network in Africa also helps with having a high country count, since it’s a continent that’s not well served by many airlines
With that in mind, which airlines serve the most countries, aside from Turkish Airlines? According to flightconnections.com, here are some observations:
- Among the “big three” Gulf carriers, Qatar Airways flies to 86 countries, Emirates flies to 75 countries, and Etihad flies to 65 countries
- Among the “big three” European carriers, Air France flies to 80 countries, British Airways flies to 80 countries, and Lufthansa flies to 69 countries
- Among the “big three” US carriers, United flies to 77 countries, American flies to 67 countries, and Delta flies to 64 countries
- Ethiopian Airlines is unique among African airlines for its scale, and flies to 80 countries
- Air Canada also has an incredibly global route network, and flies to 64 countries
As you can see, that means Qatar Airways serves the most countries after Turkish Airlines, while Air France, British Airways, and Ethiopian Airlines, are currently tied for third place.
Meanwhile it’s impressive that Emirates serves so many countries when you consider that the airline just flies wide body jets. If you combined the networks of Emirates and flydubai (both are owned by the government, but the airlines are run separately), then the combined airline would have close to as many destinations as Turkish Airlines.
Let me of course also acknowledge that the number of countries served and number of destinations served is very different, and US carriers would do much better by the latter metric. And if the question is the number of premium destinations served, then there’s only one right answer. 😉
When you put it all together, below is the chart with the 13 most “global” airlines, in terms of countries served (I had to include KLM as well, since it ties Air Canada and Delta, even if it doesn’t lead the way among European carriers).
| Airline | Countries served |
|---|---|
| Turkish Airlines | 117 |
| Qatar Airways | 86 |
| Air France | 80 |
| British Airways | 80 |
| Ethiopian Airlines | 80 |
| United Airlines | 77 |
| Emirates Airline | 75 |
| Lufthansa | 69 |
| American Airlines | 67 |
| Etihad Airways | 65 |
| Delta Air Lines | 64 |
| Air Canada | 64 |
| KLM Royal Dutch Airlines | 64 |
Bottom line
Turkish Airlines sets the world record for serving the most countries in the world. The airline actively flies to 117 countries, but including suspended routes, serves 130+ countries. That puts the airline way ahead of the next carriers by this metric, which include Qatar Airways at 86 countries, followed by a tie between Air France, British Airways, and Ethiopian Airlines, at 80 countries.
Are you surprised by the airlines serving the most countries?
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