Does Turkish Airlines (Türk Hava Yolları) support Israel?

We have not yet found publicly recorded donations from Turkish Airlines (Türk Hava Yolları). Absence of records does not confirm absence of support.

Filed under: Hotels & travel companies · Companies that support Israel

Background

No donations or support for Israel by Turkish Airlines are on record. Before the war the partly state-owned Turkish flag carrier was one of the largest foreign airlines at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport, operating up to 16 flights a day from Istanbul — a purely commercial relationship. It suspended all Israel flights after the war began in October 2023, and in April 2025 it and Pegasus formally gave up their Ben Gurion landing slots, signaling no near-term return. An October 2025 report said the airline was weighing a request to resume service, but as of July 2026 no Tel Aviv flights appear in its schedules. In May 2026, in an operation coordinated by the Turkish government, Turkish Airlines aircraft flew released Global Sumud Flotilla detainees out of Israel's Ramon Airport to Turkey — a state-directed evacuation, not commercial service to Israel. The airline's absence from Israel tracks the Turkish government's stance during the war; nothing in the record constitutes support for Israel.

Ynetnews (October 2023 suspension) Globes (April 2025 slot relinquishment) The Jerusalem Post (October 2025 possible resumption report) Asharq Al-Awsat (May 2026 flotilla evacuation flights)

What we checked

• News & official statements — 2026-07-29
  Searched Turkish Airlines + Israel donations, support, statements and route history. Found only the commercial route arc — up to 16 daily Tel Aviv flights pre-war, October 2023 suspension, April 2025 slot relinquishment, no return as of July 2026 — and the May 2026 state-coordinated flotilla evacuation flights. No donations, sponsorships or supportive statements toward Israel found.
• Nonprofit tax filings (Form 990) — 2026-07-29
  The pipeline's ProPublica query errored (404 on the search API); a manual Nonprofit Explorer search found no Turkish Airlines foundation filing US 990s. THY is a Turkish company (Turkey Wealth Fund holds about 49%) whose philanthropy runs through Turkish institutions outside the US 990 system; no Israel-linked grants identifiable.
• SEC filings — 2026-07-29
  Not an SEC registrant — Turkish Airlines is listed on Borsa Istanbul (THYAO), not in the US, so there are no EDGAR filings to review. Israel-related activity verified instead through Israeli, Turkish and aviation trade press.
• Federal election records (FEC) — 2026-07-29
  OpenFEC committee search returned no Turkish Airlines corporate PAC (0 committees). As a foreign state-linked carrier it has no US federal PAC; no political disbursements to review.
• Independent fact-checkers — 2026-07-29
  Cross-checked boycott lists and viral claims in both directions: Turkish Airlines does not appear on BDS-aligned lists as an Israel supporter — consistent with the absence of support evidence — and no fact-checker-flagged claims of THY donations to Israel were found. Its route suspension and the Turkish government's wartime stance are widely reported.

Frequently asked questions

Sources & citations

Record last updated: 2026-07-29

• Ynetnews (October 2023 suspension) ynetnews.com
• Globes (April 2025 slot relinquishment) en.globes.co.il
• The Jerusalem Post (October 2025 possible resumption report) jpost.com
• Asharq Al-Awsat (May 2026 flotilla evacuation flights) english.aawsat.com