Istanbul Airport is one of the better placed connecting airports in the world. Major cities and capitals including London, Warsaw and Paris sit within a 3,500 km radius, as do the cities of the Middle East and North Africa. Almost all of them are reachable in under five hours, which is what makes it work as a place to change planes.

The Iran and US war, which has been ongoing for months now, has given Istanbul an influx of traffic. Much of it appears to have been redirected from Dubai and Doha as Gulf operations came under pressure.

Today Turkish Airlines, Turkey's national airline, serves more than 350 destinations and, by its own count, 131 countries. It holds a Guinness World Record for flying to more countries than any other airline, a title it has held since 2012. The carrier continues to expand further west and east, capitalizing on its position. Somewhat, though, African countries seem to be suffering from that expansion, as the airline's focus appears directed toward European, Asian and North American markets.

Five African capitals, permanently removed

On September 11, five major African destinations were cancelled and permanently removed from the airline's schedules. They are Lusaka, Luanda, Kinshasa, Libreville and Juba.

This shows a notable shift for the airline. Over the past decade and a half it pushed hard for dominance in the African market, building a network that let passengers across the continent reach almost anywhere through Istanbul. Passengers from these cities will now have to look at alternatives to reach Europe and Asia.

The airline emerging as that alternative is Ethiopian Airlines, which runs its own connecting operation through Addis Ababa and is Africa's largest carrier. Ethiopian has been a competitor on these markets for years.

The capacity did not disappear

A further six destinations outside Africa have also been affected by the changes, as the airline looks to free up capacity within its network. However, that capacity has not simply been removed. New flights and higher frequencies have been added elsewhere, including daily service to Santiago in Chile and increased frequencies to Sydney, Seville, Chengdu and Phnom Penh.

South Africa is the exception within the African market. Turkish is actually adding flights on both Istanbul to Johannesburg and Istanbul to Cape Town. This highlights the continued importance of the South African market to Turkish Airlines, despite the wider adjustments being made to its international network.

A new phase, and a selective one

The latest changes show how quickly the global aviation market can change, and how airlines must constantly adjust their networks to meet demand. Istanbul's location continues to give Turkish Airlines a major advantage in connecting Europe, Asia, Africa and North America. Removing several African destinations, however, raises questions about the airline's future strategy on the continent.

While some African cities may lose direct access to Istanbul, competitors such as Ethiopian Airlines could use the opportunity to strengthen their own networks. At the same time, the increased services to South Africa show that Turkish Airlines has not completely turned away from Africa.

So, is the airline turning its back on Africa? Perhaps it is concentrating capacity on markets it considers more important for future growth.

Ultimately the change marks the beginning of a new phase for Turkish Airlines, one where expansion is combined with a more selective approach to its global network. Unfortunately, some African countries could suffer from it.