IndiGo is fully compliant with all regulatory frameworks and regulations for operating flights with planes leased from Turkish Airlines, IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers said on Wednesday and also mentioned that it is for the government to decide on the renewal of the leases.

The comments also come against the backdrop of aviation watchdog BCAS, on May 15, revoking the security clearance for Turkish company Celebi Airport Services India Pvt Ltd in the "interest of national security", days after Turkiye backed Pakistan and condemned India's strikes on terror camps in the neighbouring country.

Some online travel portals and associations have also issued advisories asking people not to visit Turkiye.

IndiGo is operating direct flights to Istanbul with two leased Boeing 777 aircraft from Turkish Airlines having over 500 seats each. It also offers codeshare seats to more than 40 points in Europe and the US through the codeshare partnership with the Turkish carrier.

To a query regarding renewal of the leases for the two aircraft, Elbers said it is up to the government to decide.

"It is important to recognise that the operation to Istanbul is taking place in the context of the Air Service Agreement (ASA) between India and Turkiye. IndiGo is fully compliant with all regulatory frameworks and regulations which are there. We have thousands actually of Indian customers booked mostly beyond Istanbul," he said while discussing the airline's fourth quarter and 2024-25 full year financial results.

The current leases for the two Turkish Airlines planes are ending this month.

Elbers said the renewal of the leases is up to the government to decide and added that, "we have this operations in place for sometime now".

In response to a question on the possible scenario of the leases not getting renewed, he said that as a good airline, IndiGo makes sure that there are back plans in case of changes.

The ASA allows for carriers of Turkiye and India to operate a total of 56 flights per week between the two countries -- 14 flights from India to Turkiye and 14 flights from Turkiye to India each by Indian carriers and the same number by airlines of Turkiye.

This arrangement with Turkish Airlines provides multiple benefits to Indian travellers, and the country's economy. The additional long-haul capacity has enabled availability of seats for Indian passengers at reasonable airfares, coming at a time when long-haul international airfares have increased substantially owing to the impact of Covid, an IndiGo official said on May 15.

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