Flights Zurich → Istanbul
ZRH → IST
How long is the flight from Zurich to Istanbul?
The flight from Zurich (ZRH) to Istanbul (IST) takes about 2h 36m. This is an estimate based on the distance between the two airports: the real time depends on the aircraft, wind and any stops.
Route overview
The flight route connects Zurich, whose airport opened in 1948, with Istanbul, where the destination airport, which began operations in 2018, serves over 84 million passengers annually. The journey is typically operated using aircraft such as Airbus A320, Airbus A321, and Boeing 737-800.
Your rights on this US flight (DOT)
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under the US DOT rules, if your flight is cancelled or significantly changed and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Amenities for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
US flight refund rules & checker →General information, not legal advice.
The Zurich (ZRH) → Istanbul (IST) route is operated by Swiss International Air Lines, Turkish Airlines. Across 68 flights monitored in recent months, 66% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 16 minutes. The cancellation rate is 0.00%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 13.2/100 (low), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At Istanbul the average ATFM delay is 3.5 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from Zurich the average ATFM delay is 0.7 minutes.
Heading to Istanbul: what to expect in this direction
Flying from Zurich (ZRH) to Istanbul (IST) heads east for about 1,739 km, a flight time of roughly 2h 36m.
Departures from Zurich on this leg cluster in the morning window: about 41% of ZRH-IST flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing Zurich the average ATFM delay is 0.7 min (atfm); arriving into Istanbul it is 3.5 min (atfm).
Across 68 tracked ZRH-IST flights, 66% left on time with an average delay of 16 min and a 0.0% cancellation rate.
Route facts
Flights on this route
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Airline punctuality on this route
| Airline | On-time | Average delay | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Swiss International Air Lines (LX) | 44% | 36 min | 1.6% |
Airlines operating ZRH-IST
Frequently asked questions about ZRH-IST
The flight from Zurich (ZRH) to Istanbul (IST) takes about 2h 36m. This is an estimate based on the distance between the two airports: the real time depends on the aircraft, wind and any stops.
On the Zurich (ZRH) -> Istanbul (IST) route, on-time performance is 66% with an average delay of 16 minutes, based on 68 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on Zurich-Istanbul is 0.00% across 68 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 2 airlines: Swiss International Air Lines, Turkish Airlines.
Enter your flight number on FlightGuard for a real-time analysis based on 9 factors: weather at Istanbul, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel, airline punctuality and recent trends.
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under US DOT rules, if the airline cancels or significantly changes your flight and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Meals or hotels for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
