Istanbul Airport won the Best Airport Award for its leadership position among the continent's hubs, the European airport trade association announced on Wednesday.
Handing out the award in the "over 40 million passenger" category, the judges described Istanbul as "a state-of-the-art airport supporting efficient operations and offering top quality service to the passengers and airport stakeholders," Airports Council International (ACI) Europe said in a statement.
ACI Europe praised the Turkish mega airport's response to COVID-19 for the full use of the latest technology to offer the best health safety to its passengers, adding that Istanbul Airport was the first in the world to secure ACI Airport Health Accreditation.
The airport also contributed to Turkey's "exceptional" traffic development, with the country's aviation sector proving the most resilient of all during the pandemic, ACI Europe noted.
Istanbul Airport became the Europe's most accessible airport with innovative solutions towards accessibility put in place such as the accessible route operating in conjunction with loud steps, which features a single-lane tactile paving surface helping passengers using mobility canes to reach their boarding gates in the domestic terminal.
IGA's efforts to offer the possibility to communicate with airport assistance in sign language, as well as its use in providing information on health and safety measures and other information on the airport website were also praised by ACI Europe.
Istanbul Airport, launched in October 2018, has a capacity of 95 million passengers annually.
With all four of its phases completed as of 2028, it will boast a passenger capacity of some 200 million.
