Turkish Airlines will add Seattle (SEA) to its network in May with flights from Istanbul (IST).

The Star Alliance member will operate 4X-weekly service from May 27 on the IST-SEA route using a Boeing 787-9. SEA becomes the 12th point on the airline’s US route map.

“The Seattle area is one of the most diverse regions in the country, with over a quarter of our residents foreign-born,” SEA MD Lance Lyttle said in a statement. “Turkish Airlines expands connections for our travelers to destinations throughout Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. On top of that, Istanbul is an exciting city and a must-visit on any traveler’s bucket list.”

Turkish chairman Ahmet Bolat added: “We are pleased to open our new Seattle gateway, the first [for Turkish] in the Pacific Northwest, as we continue to expand our US presence and global route network.”

The 11 US airports to which Turkish already flies include Atlanta (ATL), Boston (BOS), Chicago O’Hare (ORD), Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW), Houston Intercontinental (IAH), Los Angeles (LAX), Miami (MIA), New York Kennedy (JFK), Newark (EWR), San Francisco SFO) and Washington Dulles (IAD).

SEA noted Turkish is the fifth international airline to announce or begin scheduled SEA service since the COVID-19 pandemic started. These include Qatar Airways and WestJet, which launched service from Doha (DOH) and Calgary (YYC), respectively, in 2021. Finnair plans to start operating flights to SEA from Helsinki (HEL) in June, while Air Tahiti Nui will commence 787-9 flights to SEA in October.

SEA will be Turkish’s 334th destination globally. The airline operates to 128 countries.