Turkish low-cost giant Pegasus Airlines has agreed to acquire Prague-based Smartwings Group—including Czech Airlines—for €154 million in cash and assumed debt. The deal, announced on 10 December, hands Pegasus four European Air Operator Certificates covering Czechia, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia, dramatically expanding its ability to launch intra-EU services without wet-leasing partners.
Smartwings operates 47 mostly leased Boeing jets serving 80 destinations and posted €1 billion in revenue last year. Pegasus chief executive Güliz Özturk said the Czech AOC is “central to our inorganic growth strategy” because it allows the Istanbul-based carrier to base aircraft and crew inside the EU single aviation market post-closing.
For corporate travel buyers the combination could mean new point-to-point routes from Prague and secondary Central-European cities to the Middle East and North Africa, where Pegasus has a deep network. Increased seat capacity may also put downward pressure on fares in price-sensitive leisure and VFR (visiting friends and relatives) segments, freeing premium inventory on incumbent carriers for business travellers.
![Pegasus buys Smartwings for €154 million, giving Turkish carrier an EU air-operator licence in Prague]()
Travel planners coordinating these potential new itineraries should also factor in entry-visa needs. VisaHQ’s Czech Republic portal (https://www.visahq.com/czech-republic/) streamlines visa applications for Czechia, Turkey and scores of other destinations, offering corporate account management, real-time status tracking and courier pickup—resources that can save both time and administrative hassle as traffic between Central Europe, the Middle East and North Africa ramps up.
The transaction still requires approval from civil-aviation and competition authorities in Prague and Brussels, a process expected to take six to eight months. Integration will run through 2027, during which Smartwings’ older Boeing fleet is likely to be refreshed with Airbus neo-family aircraft to align with Pegasus’s order book.
Action point: mobility managers should track regulatory milestones. Once the Czech AOC is in Pegasus hands, companies may gain additional non-stop options for staff moving between Prague and growth markets in the Middle East.
Smartwings operates 47 mostly leased Boeing jets serving 80 destinations and posted €1 billion in revenue last year. Pegasus chief executive Güliz Özturk said the Czech AOC is “central to our inorganic growth strategy” because it allows the Istanbul-based carrier to base aircraft and crew inside the EU single aviation market post-closing.
For corporate travel buyers the combination could mean new point-to-point routes from Prague and secondary Central-European cities to the Middle East and North Africa, where Pegasus has a deep network. Increased seat capacity may also put downward pressure on fares in price-sensitive leisure and VFR (visiting friends and relatives) segments, freeing premium inventory on incumbent carriers for business travellers.
Travel planners coordinating these potential new itineraries should also factor in entry-visa needs. VisaHQ’s Czech Republic portal (https://www.visahq.com/czech-republic/) streamlines visa applications for Czechia, Turkey and scores of other destinations, offering corporate account management, real-time status tracking and courier pickup—resources that can save both time and administrative hassle as traffic between Central Europe, the Middle East and North Africa ramps up.
The transaction still requires approval from civil-aviation and competition authorities in Prague and Brussels, a process expected to take six to eight months. Integration will run through 2027, during which Smartwings’ older Boeing fleet is likely to be refreshed with Airbus neo-family aircraft to align with Pegasus’s order book.
Action point: mobility managers should track regulatory milestones. Once the Czech AOC is in Pegasus hands, companies may gain additional non-stop options for staff moving between Prague and growth markets in the Middle East.
