A photo of Istanbul Airport in Türkiye is being shared on social media falsely claiming that it is from an airport in Uttar Pradesh, India.
The photo was posted by the handle Jitendra pratap singh (@jpsin1) with the caption when translated to English reads, "Uttar Pradesh created history, becoming the first state in India to have 21 airports." (Original text in Hindi: उत्तर प्रदेश ने इतिहास रचा, 21 एयरपोर्ट वाला भारत का पहला राज्य बना।)
BOOM has previously fact-checked misinformation posted by the X handle.
Click here to view, and here for an archive.
The Facebook page 'Bright Hub', whose logo can be seen in the viral photo had posted the same graphic on February 25, 2025, with the same caption.
Click here to view, and here for an archive
FACT-CHECK
BOOM found that the viral photo is from Istanbul Airport in Türkiye.
We ran a reverse image search using Google Lens on the viral photo, and the results showed that the photo was earlier published on the website of Condé Nast Traveler stating it is from Istanbul Airport. The headline of the article read, "iGA Istanbul Airport Was Named World’s Best International Hub—Here’s Why."
The same article was also posted by the official X handle of Istanbul Airport on November 26, 2024.
The visuals in the viral photo also match those from Istanbul Airport, which was previously posted on its official Instagram handle in December 2021.
21 Operational airports in Uttar Pradesh?
Additionally, the caption with the viral photo is misleading as it claims that Uttar Pradesh already has 21 operational airports.
In February 2024, UP CM Yogi Adityanath had claimed that the state "will soon" have 21 airports. During the assembly session back then CM Yogi had stated, "There has been significant growth in land, water, and air infrastructure in our state. Uttar Pradesh will soon have 21 airports."
The Times of India reported in March 2024 that Uttar Pradesh had 14 operational airports.
According to official data from the Ministry of Civil Aviation’s response to a Rajya Sabha question in March 2023, there were a total of 19 airports in the state, including the proposed Noida International Airport.
Of these 19, five were non-operational, and one was under construction. Click here to view
Invest UP, which is an investment promotion and facilitation agency of the Government of Uttar Pradesh, posted on X on March 6, 2025, claiming that the state is "set to become India’s first with 21 airports".
The caption further stated, "UP is adding 5 more airports in Azamgarh, Aligarh, Moradabad, Shravasti and Chitrakoot soon. The Noida International Airport is also on track for completion, further boosting connectivity and economic growth."
