UK Travelers Heading to Turkey Complete Their Alcohol Supply in Under 30 Minutes

In only 30 minutes after departure, British passengers on a recent SunExpress trip to Turkey managed to finish the aircraft’s entire stock of booze. Max Kownatzki, the US-German chief executive, said the horrifying occurrence happened on a flight that was specifically designed for golfers in an interview with travel magazine TTG, according to the Independent. The precise number of people on board, the departing airport, the date, and the hour of the trip were all unknown, but Kownatzki characterized British travelers as “more high-spend, more hedonistic” than those from other nations.

“We sold out of beer and wine 25 minutes after departure; we haven’t done that in any other market,” Kownatzki claimed in an attempt to explain why the alcohol supplies on the Turkish aircraft ran out so quickly.

TTG reports that SunExpress has increased its presence in the UK considerably, operating at almost twice as many airports than it did in 2022—from five to nine. Kownatzki provided an explanation for this quick growth, stating, “Prior to then, we had a few niche routes, but nothing significant. We are now third, behind easyJet and Jet2.com. We had to expand our network, which led us to consider the United Kingdom.

SunExpress provides flights to Turkey’s Antalya, Izmir, and Dalaman from a number of UK airports, including Birmingham, Edinburgh, Gatwick, Luton, Manchester, Bristol, and Newcastle. By this summer, the airline plans to reach Stansted and Leeds Bradford, with a total of 136 weekly flights serving 1.3 million people.

Since its founding 35 years ago as a result of a collaboration between Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa, SunExpress has garnered honors, most notably being named the Best Leisure Airline in Europe in August 2023.

In a related instance, this past weekend, an intoxicated passenger caused havoc on a flight from the UK to Turkey. The flight attendants had to call the police when the rowdy customer got into a fight with other passengers. The guy got into a confrontation with staff members and other passengers in the video, which went viral very fast.

In the video, a little child traveling with her mother was shown to be terrified and running for cover as the guy swore and punched both other passengers and employees. When flight attendants tried to calm down the customer, who was sporting a green and white striped Celtic Football Club jersey, he became very combative. He was reportedly heard yelling, “You’re a f—ing f—y,” as he pointed at another passenger, according to reports from the New York Post and Daily Record.