Europe's legacy airlines are quick to complain about the new competition from the big three Persian Gulf carriers. But they are facing what could be an even more serious threat much closer to home: Turkish Airlines. Star Alliance member Turkish Airlines is, at least in some respects, in an even better position than that of Emirates, Etihad Airways or Qatar Airways in that it enjoys a significant home market with a main base in Istanbul-the center of Turkey's fast-growing economy. From there, Turkish Airlines can reach all key destinations in Europe, Central Asia, the Middle East and even most of Africa using narrowbodies, whereas Emirates does not even own a narrowbody. Etihad and Qatar predominantly operate widebodies, which are much more expensive to purchase and difficult to fill.
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