- More than two million seats from UK and Ireland for summer 2026 -

25 June, 2025: SunExpress, a joint venture of Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines, is expanding its UK route network for summer 2026 with the launch of services from East Midlands Airport. 

Passengers will be able to fly direct from East Midlands to Antalya with SunExpress three times a week for the first time in 2026, offering even more departure choice to passengers travelling from across the UK to one of Türkiye's most popular destinations.

The leading leisure airline is also launching new routes from its existing departure airports across the UK and Ireland. These include a twice weekly service to Bodrum from both London Gatwick and Manchester Airport, offering convenient direct access to Türkiye’s Aegean coast.

In addition, SunExpress will launch two weekly flights from Cork to Antalya and two weekly flights from Dublin to Dalaman, further enhancing connectivity between Ireland and Türkiye.

SunExpress’ expansion will mean it offers a total of 2.1 million seats from the UK & Ireland for summer 2026 – a 10% increase over 2025. The airline will provide a choice of up to 196 weeklyflights on 30 routes from an expanded 14 airports, highlighting its position as the leading carrier from the UK and Ireland to the Turkish Riviera.

Tobias Bracht, Head of Sales for SunExpress, said: “We are delighted to be expanding our UK and Ireland network with the launching of services from East Midlands Airport. With direct flights to Türkiye from 14 airports next summer, we will be offering more choice, convenience and value than ever before, reinforcing our commitment to being the leading leisure carrier from the UK and Ireland to Türkiye.”

SunExpress is deepening its collaboration with the UK travel trade by working closely with travel agents, tour operators, and distribution partners. The airline supports the trade with flexible fare options, advanced booking tools, and tailored partnerships to meet diverse customer needs. As the UK and Ireland is SunExpress’ second core market, the airline remains committed to empowering the travel industry to deliver exceptional travel experiences to Türkiye and beyond. 

In addition to ‘summer sun and beach’ travel, SunExpress caters for a number of other types of travel including cultural, archaeological, and culinary tourism, and sports travel.

SunExpress is a value carrier with a strong presence on the Turkish Riviera and in Anatolia. The airline operates in a total of 237 routes to 92 destinations across 35 countries. 

For more information, visit a travel agent or www.sunexpress.com

- Ends -

14 UK and Ireland airports in 2026:

• Birmingham
• Bristol
• Cork
• Dublin
• East Midlands (New in 2026)
• Edinburgh
• Glasgow
• Leeds Bradford
• Liverpool
• London Gatwick
• London Luton
• London Stansted
• Manchester
• Newcastle

Additional routes in Summer 2026:

• Cork to Antalya: Twice weekly
• Dublin to Dalaman: Twice weekly
• East Midlands to Antalya: Three weekly
• London Gatwick to Bodrum: Twice weekly 
• Manchester to Bodrum: Twice weekly

Images

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About SunExpress

Founded in Antalya as a joint venture between Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa, SunExpress acts as a tourism ambassador between Türkiye and Europe with 35 years of experience and leisure airline expertise. Operating flights to 237 routes across 35 countries, SunExpress carries nearly 15 million passengers annually with over 4,500 employees based in Antalya, Frankfurt, Izmir, Ankara and Dalaman. For more information, please visit www.sunexpress.com.

For more information, contact:

Charlie Hampton / Faye Clarke 
Tel:  +44 (0)7350 420791
Email:  sunexpress@pembrokeandrye.com