Travellers hoping to jet off to the ‘world’s best airport’ will be spoilt for choice as 15 new flights are set to launch from London Stansted.
Turkish Airlines will join the major hub from March 18 and fly routes to Istanbul up to 15 times a week.
Istanbul Airport was named Best International Airport in Travel + Leisure’s World Best Awards ranking last year.
The popular airport has is home to one of the largest duty-free areas worldwide.
What’s more, the hub placed fifth in Food & Wine’s top ten leading terminals for food and drink across the globe back in 2024.
It has an incredible selection of culinary delights, reflecting its position at the crossroads of Europe and Asia.
Another Turkish destination, Bodrum, will see new flights from Stansted via AJet from June 26.
There will be new flights added throughout the year to destinations closer to home, too.
Travellers hoping to jet off to the ‘world’s best airport’ will be spoilt for choice as 15 new flights are set to launch from London Stansted
Budget airline Ryanair is set to introduce routes to Malmo, Sweden twice a week from April 1.
The carrier will also add more services to Glasgow from March 29.
Meanwhile, Jet2 will bring new routes to Jerez, in Spain, from May 1, as well as Samos in Greece from May 7 and La Palma from October 26.
For travellers hoping to head to France, easyJet is introducing new routes to Paris Charles de Gaulle from March 5.
From May 7, passengers can catch TUI flights to Greek island Kos.
Elsewhere, BA CityFlyer is launching services to Olbia in Sardinia from May 23.
Ciaran Brannigan, Commercial Director at London Stansted, expressed how ‘delighted’ the hub was over the new routes.
He added: ‘We’re delighted to welcome new airlines and routes during 2026 that give our passengers even greater choice, value and convenience.
Turkish Airlines will join the major hub from March 18 and fly routes to Istanbul up to 15 times a week
‘London Stansted continues to grow as a key gateway for travel across Europe and beyond, and these additions underline our commitment to offering more destinations and better connectivity for leisure and business travellers alike.’
In December, Stansted secured planning approval to increase its annual passenger limit up to 51 million. This marks a huge increase from the 30 million it welcomed in the year up to September 2024.
This paves the way for it to make best use of its existing single runway and grow passenger volumes towards the new limit over the next two decades.
As a result, Stansted will be able to do that without any increase in the number of flights the airport is already permitted to operate and within the existing airport boundary.
