Istanbul Airport

Istanbul Airport (IATA: IST, ICAO: LTFM) is the biggest airport in Turkiye. Located in north west of Istanbul, the airport is the busiest and biggest airport in Europe as per 2022 statistics of EuroControl. The airport has 5 runways, fuel farm, dedicated cargo area consisting of 5 apron (29 heavy stands), several warehouses and facilities (biggest one being Turkish Cargo followed by DHL and UPS), and is home to world's biggest airport terminal (under one roof).

The airport has not been completed. As of January 2023, only Phase 1a and 1b is finished. The final phase of the airport includes 8 runways, 2 terminals with 1 satellite terminal.

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Sceneries

Payware

There are multiple payware options depending on the simulator for Istanbul Airport. You can find more information from the table below.

Simulator	Developer	Publisher	Links
P3D v4/v5	SceneryTR	SceneryTR	https://secure.simmarket.com/scenerytr-stanbul-airport-ltfm.phtml
X-Plane	SceneryTR	Aerosoft	https://secure.simmarket.com/aerosoft-airport-istanbul-x-plane-11.phtml
MSFS 2020	SceneryTR	SceneryTR	Can be bought from MarketPlace OR https://secure.simmarket.com/scenerytr-istanbul-airport-ltfm_msfs.phtml

Freeware

There are also freeware options available for Istanbul Airport. However there is significant difference in quality.

Simulator	Developer	Publisher	Links
FSX/P3D	Hakan Daghan, Kamil Uzun, Erman Gokman Pilicoglu, Muhtesem Firtina Ozcinar	Turkish Virtual	https://turkishvirtual.com/turkishvirtual_LTFM_scenerys.asp
X-Plane	Mali Oguducu, Hayri Buberci, Kamil Uzun, Muhtesem Firtina Ozcinar	Turkish Virtual	https://turkishvirtual.com/turkishvirtual_LTFM_scenerys.asp
MSFS 2020	Hayri Buberci, Mali Oguducu, Kamil UZUN, M Firtina Ozcinar	Turkish Virtual	https://turkishvirtual.com/turkishvirtual_LTFM_scenerys.asp

Arrival Procedures

Istanbul Airport is located within Yesilkoy TMA (Terminal Manoeuvring Area). Yesilkoy TMA covers Istanbul Airport (LTFM), Sabiha Gokcen Airport (LTFJ), Ataturk Airport (LTBA), Samandira Airbase (LTBX), Corlu Ataturk Airport (LTBU), Hezarfen Municipal Airport (LTBW), Cengiz Topel Airport (LTBQ), Canakkale Airport (LTBH), Bursa Yunuseli Airport (LTBE) and Bursa Yenisehir Airport (LTBQ).

Istanbul Airport utilizes RNAV in all of its procedures. In addition, P-RNAV (Precision-Area Navigation, RNP1) capability is required. If unable, pilot must inform the controller so that aircraft can be given radar vectors to final. Arrival into Istanbul Airport might seem complicated to some pilots however it is actually very simple. LTFM STARs utilize PMS (Point Merge System) for efficient airspace control, separation, and to control traffic flow within Yesilkoy TMA. All STARs utilize idle descent philosophy until PMS entry. These point merge systems act as an arc of a circle and ease air traffic control.

STARs

The STARs at Istanbul airport are designed to be ambiguous between the active runways. For instance, if northern config is active, RILEX2A STAR will end at IMREN waypoint, and IMREN is IAF (Initial Approach Fix) for all approach procedures for all northern runways. This means, whether you land at 34L, 35R or 36 (when north config is active), you still use the same STAR procedure for all runways. You can find the STAR designator table on the next page.

Active Runway Configuration
North Config Active STARS Standard (uses default PMS) 2A Alternative* (uses opposite PMS) *not applicable to DRAMO and INBET STARs 2N
South Config Active STARS Standard (uses default PMS) 2B Alternative* (uses opposite PMS) *not applicable to RILEX STARs 2P