Turkish low-cost carrier · Sabiha hub in Istanbul · belly connections between Europe and Asia
Pegasus Airlines uses Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen International Airport as its main hub. Its high-frequency narrowbody belly network across Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia gives Chinese shippers a connecting option through a Turkish hub. Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited helps Chinese shippers secure belly space and connecting bookings.
| Country | Republic of Turkey |
| Head office hub | Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen International Airport (SAW) |
| IATA code | PC |
| ICAO code | PGT |
| Founded | 1990 |
| Official lookup website | flypgs.com |
Pegasus Airlines is registered in the Republic of Turkey and headquartered in Istanbul. Founded in 1990, it is one of the largest low-cost carriers in the country. Its main hub is Sabiha Gökçen International Airport (SAW) on the Asian side of Istanbul, with secondary operating bases at Ankara, Izmir, Antalya, Adana and other domestic airports. The IATA code is PC, the ICAO code is PGT, and the official website is flypgs.com.
Pegasus Airlines operates short- and medium-haul point-to-point flights at high frequency, building a network around the SAW hub that covers Turkey and the surrounding region. According to recent public disclosures, it runs about 400 daily movements through SAW and serves more than 50 countries and about 160 destinations, including some 39 domestic points in Turkey. That density gives air cargo a deep base of belly departures, so cargo exported from China can clear Istanbul and reach points in Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia within short connection times.
Cargo is handled under the Pegasus Cargo brand in a low-cost air freight model, using passenger belly space and aimed at general cargo, perishables and cross-border e-commerce flows. For Chinese shippers the value of Pegasus is not transoceanic freighter service but the gateway position of the SAW hub and its dense belly schedule. Combined with the existing scheduled passenger and cargo services from Chinese airports to Istanbul, this forms a corridor that starts in China, connects in Turkey and reaches across Europe and Asia.
Starting in the 1990s, Pegasus expanded on the low-cost model and renewed its fleet, and has built a firm position on Turkish domestic regional routes and short- to medium-haul international services. Operations have long centred on the Sabiha Gökçen hub, where the airline has in recent years built its own ground handling, maintenance and cargo facilities. Self-handled ground services cover loading, connections and type maintenance, which underpins on-time connections for belly cargo. The connection reliability and punctuality that Chinese shippers care about depend directly on that in-house control at the hub.
From a Chinese forwarder's perspective, the narrowbody belly network that Pegasus represents fills gaps left by conventional widebody freighters at secondary European cities, second- and third-tier Middle East points and Central Asian nodes. Cargo from China to those regions often needs two or more mainline connections through traditional hubs; distribution through the high-frequency SAW belly network reduces that to one road transfer and one belly connection, balancing transit time against cost.
Pegasus does not publish a directly owned office in China. Contact its local Chinese general sales agent, or let us handle the connection. Goodhope Logistics (China) Limited has long handled international air freight bookings and knows the connecting-booking process at major Chinese airports. We act for Chinese shippers in rate enquiries, booking requests, air waybill confirmation and the declaration of irregular cargo with Pegasus Cargo and its authorized channels.
Chinese shippers do not need to deal with the foreign carrier directly; we act as the booking agent for the whole job. Once the shipper provides the departure airport, destination city, cargo nature and pieces, weight and dimensions, we match a belly option connecting through SAW, allocate space, issue the air waybill, complete acceptance handover and coordinate with the destination agent for distribution, then report rates, schedules and key milestones back to the shipper.
The Pegasus fleet is built mainly on current-generation Airbus narrowbodies with a small number of Boeing 737-800s. Public investor relations disclosures put the fleet at about 129 aircraft at the end of a recent first quarter: about 120 Airbus and about 9 Boeing aircraft, with NEO-generation aircraft making up roughly 88 percent. Fleet age and fuel efficiency rank among the best in Europe. Narrowbody belly space suits apparel, textiles, consumer electronics accessories, e-commerce parcels, auto parts and general manufactured goods exported from China.
| Aircraft type | Number in fleet (approx.) | Operating profile | Cargo suited to belly capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 737-800 | 9 aircraft | Short- and medium-haul mainline supplement | General cargo, e-commerce parcels |
| Airbus A320ceo | 6 aircraft | Domestic and near-haul international routes | Low-density cargo, documents and samples |
| Airbus A320neo | 46 aircraft | High-frequency Europe and Middle East routes | Apparel, electronics accessories |
| Airbus A321neo | About 68 aircraft | Medium-haul workhorse, larger belly capacity | Denser general cargo, auto parts |
| Total | About 129 aircraft | Narrowbody belly network | General cargo and e-commerce goods |
Pegasus does not publish a breakdown of belly tonnage and has no freighter fleet on record; cargo moves almost entirely in passenger bellies. The A321neo has a longer fuselage and more belly volume than the A320 family, which suits denser cargo from China on medium-haul routes. The weight and volume limits for any single flight are subject to the aircraft type and load plan confirmed by the carrier on the day of booking.
Pegasus publishes no direct schedule from China; the connection is made at the hub. Scheduled passenger and cargo services between China and Istanbul are currently operated mainly by Turkish Airlines, Air China, China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines and Sichuan Airlines, with nonstop flights between Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Urumqi and other airports and Istanbul Airport (IST). Cargo can fly from those airports to Istanbul on existing scheduled services and then move through the SAW hub onto the Pegasus Cargo belly network for Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia.
Istanbul has two airports: IST on the European side handles intercontinental mainline traffic, while SAW on the Asian side is the Pegasus main hub. Cargo can be transferred by road between them, and we can arrange the terminal-to-terminal transfer and re-palletising between IST and SAW, giving a two-leg solution of a direct China to Istanbul mainline flight plus belly distribution through SAW. Times are local, and schedules change with the season and are subject to carrier confirmation on the day of booking.
Cargo clears export at Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Urumqi or another airport, flies on an existing scheduled service to Istanbul and is handed over there. This leg is intercontinental mainline traffic with stable transit times.
After the road transfer to SAW, cargo enters the high-frequency Pegasus Cargo belly network and is distributed to points in Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia according to each destination schedule, connecting to local clearance and last-mile delivery.
ISTANBUL SABIHA GÖKÇEN (SAW) · east-west belly network
The map is schematic and shows the east-west pattern in which SAW radiates west into Europe and east into the Middle East and Central Asia. Actual destinations follow the Pegasus Cargo network in force at the time; some points shown are representative cities. Shippers can connect through this hub to about 56 countries and roughly 160 destinations.
Through the Pegasus SAW belly network, cargo from China can connect to countries and regions in southern, eastern and western Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia. Representative destinations in Europe include the United Kingdom (London), France (Paris, Nice), Germany (Frankfurt), Italy (Rome, Milan), Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Switzerland, Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece and points around Ukraine; in the Middle East, Iraq (Baghdad, Erbil), Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (Dubai), Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt and Cyprus; and in Central Asia and the South Caucasus, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia and Kazakhstan.
Turkey sits where the Balkans meet Asia Minor, and the frequency of belly departures at SAW means Chinese cargo can reach the main southern and eastern European consumer markets within one or two sectors after the Istanbul connection. That suits apparel, small household goods and e-commerce replenishment.
Pegasus runs dense schedules to Iraq, the Gulf states and the South Caucasus, so building materials, hardware, auto parts and consumer electronics from China can connect through SAW into Middle East reconstruction markets and Central Asian supply chains.
Trade between Turkey and China has deepened steadily. The Trans-Caspian Middle Corridor and the southern route of the China-Europe Railway Express now run as regular services, the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway is operating at full capacity, and transit from China to Turkey has shortened to around 15 days. Air, rail and sea complement each other on this corridor: rail carries large volumes where time sensitivity is moderate, belly capacity takes urgent, high-value and e-commerce replenishment traffic, and shippers choose the mix according to the cargo.
Two-way trade covers machinery and electrical products, textiles and apparel, auto parts, solar modules, household goods and agricultural produce. A large share of the cargo China exports to Turkey, or re-exports through Turkey to Europe and the Middle East, moves in many small lots with tight replenishment deadlines, which matches a supply structure built on frequent narrowbody belly departures. Sabiha works as a collection and transit point in this trade: cargo gathers in Istanbul and is then broken down and distributed by the Pegasus belly network to dozens of neighbouring countries, avoiding the low load factors and high cost of direct flights to each one.
For Chinese cross-border e-commerce sellers the SAW hub also has value as a regional stock point. Southern and western European markets, the Gulf and Central Asia lie within two to four hours of flying time of each other, so sellers can position inventory in a supervised warehouse near Istanbul and replenish daily by belly flight as orders fluctuate, shortening final fulfilment times. Combined with the belly connections described here, this forms a chain that runs from dispatch in China through regional distribution to fast fulfilment.
Istanbul commands the passages between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. SAW sits on the Asian side, within narrowbody economic range of the Middle East, southern Europe and Central Asia, so cargo connecting here can serve three market directions at once and avoid the cost of multiple connections.
About 400 daily movements at SAW create a dense supply of belly space, and when peak-season capacity tightens, the frequency of narrowbody departures gives Chinese exports more flexible options for loose and partial-hold loading.
About 88 percent of the fleet is NEO generation, with markedly lower fuel burn and emissions than the previous generation. The low-cost model keeps belly rates more flexible than conventional freighter pricing, which suits price-sensitive general cargo and e-commerce goods.
The Middle Corridor and the southern China-Europe rail route meet in Istanbul, so belly capacity can connect with rail and sea at the same hub, letting shippers combine modes according to delivery dates and cargo value.
The standard path for cargo moving on the Pegasus belly network is: shipper instruction, our booking, acceptance by the mainline carrier, connection and distribution at SAW, handover to the destination agent. The steps are: the shipper gives us the departure airport, destination city, commodity, pieces, weight and dimensions, and any battery or temperature-control requirement; we quote the belly rate with the Istanbul connection and the connecting schedule and return a booking reference; the shipper delivers the cargo to the departure airport terminal or our designated warehouse at the agreed time; the mainline carrier flies it to Istanbul, where it is transferred by road from IST to SAW and re-palletised; Pegasus Cargo accepts it for the second sector according to the destination schedule, and the destination agent handles arrival notice and clearance.
We act as booking agent throughout, handling air waybill issuance, space confirmation, pre-checks of dangerous goods and special cargo declarations, coordination of connection problems and waybill status reporting. The shipper does not have to deal separately with the mainline carrier, the SAW terminal and the destination agent; we are the single point of contact, which cuts the communication burden of multi-leg international transport.
On documentation, shippers need the usual trade papers: commercial invoice, packing list, export declaration authorization and any certificate of origin required by the destination country. Where a destination has special clearance requirements, we flag the documents and regulatory conditions at the booking stage so that cargo is not held on arrival in Istanbul for missing paperwork. We prepare the air waybill and the carrier at origin signs it; tracking numbers exist separately for the mainline and belly legs, and we consolidate them into a single set of milestones for the shipper.
On pricing, belly rates depend on the departure airport, destination, cargo density and peak-season supply and demand. Under the low-cost model, rate structures are sensitive to load factors and space utilisation, so shippers should lock space and rates two to four weeks ahead of major promotions and peak periods. For regular shippers we can hold space and quote on a rolling monthly basis, which helps exporters plan production and delivery.
Pegasus Cargo publicly covers general cargo, perishables and cross-border e-commerce flows. Fresh produce, flowers, textile samples and e-commerce parcels from China get relatively dense departure windows from the frequent belly schedule. Temperature-control equipment and live animal acceptance requirements follow the carrier's special cargo rules on the day of booking.
Restricted cargo such as lithium batteries, magnetic items, powders and liquids must be classified and its packaging pre-checked before booking. We help shippers compile the transport condition report and review declaration documents in advance, reducing the risk of cargo being returned because a declaration does not match.
Pegasus publishes no CEIV pharmaceutical certification and no freighter special-handling capability. For cargo with strict temperature requirements that needs a dedicated freighter or active temperature-controlled ULDs, we recommend matching a qualified freighter operator, or confirming the current acceptance scope with Pegasus Cargo before booking. Humanitarian and emergency relief shipments can be quoted per project, and we can help coordinate priority space with the carrier.
The airline information, fleet data, route network and schedules here are compiled from carrier disclosures for reference by shippers and forwarders. Actual space, rates, acceptance scope and connections are subject to confirmation by the carrier and by us on the day of booking. Nothing here constitutes a contract of carriage or a rate commitment, and the carrier may adjust flight times and belly acceptance policy according to operations.
Booking agent:Goodhope Logistics (China) LimitedChinese shippers can send enquiries and booking requests for Pegasus belly cargo connecting through Istanbul, and we help with mainline acceptance, distribution at SAW and handover to the destination agent. Company information is available at https://goodhope86.com .
Pegasus Airlines, Pegasus Cargo and related names and marks belong to their owners. They are cited here only to describe cargo services and booking arrangements and do not imply any subordination, endorsement or partnership. Trademarks and marks of other airlines, airports and alliances mentioned remain with their respective owners.