SPECIAL COLOURS - SunExpress Airlines, the joint venture of Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines, officially unveiled its fan-chosen Crystal Palace Football Club aircraft, ‘The Eagle’

SunExpress Airlines, the joint venture of Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines, officially unveiled its fan-chosen Crystal Palace Football Club aircraft, ‘The Eagle’, at London Gatwick Airport today, marking a major milestone in its official airline partnership with the club.

The bespoke livery, chosen directly by Crystal Palace supporters, was revealed during a dedicated airside ceremony at Gatwick’s South Terminal. Senior representatives from SunExpress, Crystal Palace FC and Gatwick Airport were joined by media, stakeholders and Crystal Palace legend, Mark Bright, as the aircraft arrived at the gate in its new colours for the first time.

Earlier this year, SunExpress and Crystal Palace invited supporters of the club to vote between two specially created designs. ‘The Eagle’, celebrating the club’s iconic crest and deep South London identity, won by a landslide with 87 per cent of the vote. The campaign generated the highest engagement ever recorded for a Crystal Palace partner activation and ranked as the second most engaged online vote in the club’s history.

The Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft with the registration TC-SMF will now operate across the SunExpress network, including regular services from London Gatwick, as well as 11 other UK and Ireland airports in total from summer 2026, carrying Crystal Palace’s colours to destinations across Europe and Türkiye.
In addition to ‘summer sun and beach’ travel, SunExpress caters for a number of other types of travel including cultural, archaeological, and culinary tourism, and sports travel.

SunExpress is a value carrier with a strong presence on the Turkish Riviera and in Anatolia. The airline operates in a total of 250 routes to 106 destinations across 37 countries.