BEFORE THE 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

WASHINGTON, D.C. 

__________________________________________ 

 ) 

Application of ) 

) 

ACT HAVAYOLLARI A.Ş. ) 

d/b/a ACT AIRLINES ) DOCKET OST-2012-0049

) 

for a Foreign Air Carrier Permit pursuant ) 

to 49 U.S.C. § 41301 and exemption ) 

authority pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 40109 ) 

(Turkey-U.S. charter, all-cargo service) ) 

__________________________________________) 

AMENDMENT NO. 1 OF 

ACT AIRLINES TO APPLICATION 

Communications with respect to this document should be sent to: 

John R. Mietus, Jr. 

Law Office of John Mietus, LLC 

6701 Democracy Blvd., Suite 300 

Bethesda, MD 20817-7500

(202) 747-5212 

(240) 396-5362 fax 

john@mietuslaw.com 

Counsel for ACT HAVAYOLLARI A.Ş.

d/b/a ACT AIRLINES 

 

March 7, 2013
BEFORE THE 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

WASHINGTON, D.C. 

__________________________________________ 

 ) 

Application of ) 

) 

ACT HAVAYOLLARI A.Ş. ) 

d/b/a ACT AIRLINES ) DOCKET OST-2012-0049

) March 7, 2013 

for a Foreign Air Carrier Permit pursuant ) 

to 49 U.S.C. § 41301 and exemption ) 

authority pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 40109 ) 

(Turkey-U.S. charter, all-cargo service) ) 

__________________________________________) 

AMENDMENT NO. 1 OF 

ACT AIRLINES TO APPLICATION 

 By application dated April 3, 2012, ACT Havayollari A.Ş. d/b/a ACT 

Airlines requested that the Department issue a foreign air carrier permit to 

enable ACT Airlines, consistent with the open skies, U.S.-Turkey Air 

Transport Agreement, to operate charter foreign air transportation of 

property and mail between a point or points in Turkey, via intermediate 

points, and points in the United States and beyond, and other charters in 

accordance with 14 C.F.R. Part 212. ACT Airlines also requested: (1) 

exemption authority, to the extent necessary and for an initial period of two 

years or until the requested permit is issued, to enable it to hold out and 

provide the service described above; and (2) such additional or other relief as 

the Department may deem necessary or appropriate. 

 ACT Airlines respectfully amends its application to update the 
- 2 - ACT Airlines 

Amendment 

Department on changes in its management structure. Under this structure, 

ACT Airlines remains substantially owned and effectively controlled by 

Turkish citizens. A recent communication from the Turkish Director General 

of Civil Aviation on this subject is attached as Exhibit 3. 

 1. As noted in the original application, ACT is a Turkish-flag carrier 

headquartered in İstanbul, Turkey.1 Father and son Yavuz and Dağlar 

Çizmeci, both Turkish citizens (Dağlar is a dual U.S./Turkish citizen), 

continue to own and control 51% of the holding company which owns ACT 

Airlines. Four of the seven members of the ACT Airlines Board of Directors 

are Turkish citizens; U.S. citizen Bharat Bhise and two appointees of a 

minority investor also sit on the Board. 

2. Since the original application, the ACT Board has eliminated the 

position of president; CEO Yavuz Çizmeci remains as the ranking executive. 

In August 2012 ACT also appointed a new General Manager, Orhan 

Sivrikaya. Mr. Sivrikaya, a Turkish citizen and a 20-year veteran of Turkish 

Airlines, is also the Accountable Manager for purposes of Turkish aviation 

law. Brief narratives of Messrs. Çizmeci and Sivrikaya, attached as Exhibit 

4, explain their roles in controlling the airline. A total of 10 executives report 

to Mr. Sivrikaya, and information concerning all current ACT Airlines 

 

1 ACT recently moved its headquarters to: 

İstanbul Kurtkoy Premium Residence 

Yenisehir Mh. Millet Cd. Sumbul Sk. 

No: 8, Kat 7, 34912 

Kurtkoy / Pendik - İstanbul / TURKEY 








ACT Airlines 

Amendment 

Exhibit 5

Current Managers of ACT Airlines 

 This exhibit updates section (d) of Exhibit 1 to the original application; 

individuals not previously identified are shown with an asterisk. All may be 

reached through the headquarters of ACT Airlines at the address listed 

above, and none are related by blood or marriage except Yavuz and Dağlar 

Çizmeci. Except as noted below, each person listed is a Turkish citizen 

(Dağlar Çizmeci holds dual U.S./Turkish citizenship). 

Turkish Directors 

Yavuz Çizmeci – Chief Executive Officer, Deputy Board Chairman 

Mr. Çizmeci, who is also CEO of myTECHNIC Aircraft MRO Services (a 

sister company of ACT Airlines) has been involved in aviation and tourism 

since he founded Turkey's Sultan Air more than 20 years ago. With his son 

Dağlar, he led the acquisition of ACT Airlines in 2006 after seven years as 

the General Manager and Vice Chairman of MNG Cargo, where he also led 

the development of a third-party MRO capability. He holds an electrical 

engineering degree from Boğaziçi (Bosphorus) University.

Dağlar Çizmeci - Board Member

Mr. Çizmeci, the son of Yavuz Çizmeci, worked with his father to initiate and 

lead the 2006 acquisition of ACT Airlines and creation of myTECHNIC with 

international funding, a first in Turkish aviation. Today he participates in 

private equity transactions as an investor and strategic advisor and is the 

Head of Originations for Bravia Capital Partners, a multi-national 

investment firm. He began his business career in New York by founding a 

day-trading firm and as a partner in day-trading software company 

Tradescape.com. Mr. Çizmeci holds a B.S. in Economics from the Wharton 

School of Business and a Master of Engineering in Logistics from 

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he concentrated on commercial 

aircraft supply chains. 

Ahmet Özgür Gen - Board Member 

Mr. Gen, a board member of myTECHNIC and a Vice President of Bravia 

Capital, participated in myTECHNIC's formation and business development 

after several years at Analytical Environmental Services in Atlanta. He 

holds an M.S. in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Georgia Tech and 

a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Boğaziçi University.

Ömer Sungur - Board Member (exiting) 

Mr. Sungur, who was Managing Director until August 2012, remains on the 

Board until the ACT Airlines General Assembly ratifies his replacement on 
- 2 - ACT Airlines 

Amendment

Exhibit 5 

the Board with the new Managing Director, Orhan Sivrikaya. He joined ACT 

Airlines in 2008 from the Flanders (Belgium) Investment & Trade agency, 

where as Deputy Commercial Attaché (2002-2008) he supported international 

trade links between Belgium and Turkey. He holds a degree in Classical 

Philology and Literature from İstanbul University and has studied 

international relations there. 

Non-Turkish Directors 

Wang Shaoping –Board Chairman 

Mr. Wang, a Chinese citizen, has been involved in the management of various 

HNA Group-related airlines and their predecessors since 1992, when he 

joined Hainan Airlines after 20 years as a maintenance engineer for Air 

China. He most recently was Executive Vice President of Xinhua Airlines and 

COO of Hong Kong Airlines and today serves as Chairman of myTECHNIC 

and two other HNA companies. 

Bharat Bhise - Board Member 

Mr. Bhise, a U.S. citizen and CEO of Bravia Capital Partners, has several 

decades' experience in global aviation, particularly in aircraft development, 

leasing, conversion, and finance. He has built a number of successful 

companies in the aviation industry, including Bravia, Freighter Conversion 

Partners, and C-S Aviation Services, where he acquired and managed a 

portfolio of 90 commercial aircraft over six years with total value of $800 

million. He is a former director of Hainan Airlines and HeavyLift Group 

(UK), and he holds an M.B.A. from New York University and a B.Comm. 

from Delhi University. 

Zhang Youqiang – Board Member

Mr. Zhang, a Chinese citizen and trained airline dispatcher, has more than 

15 years' airline experience at China Northwestern Airlines and in the 

service and logistics departments of HNA, where he is General Manager of 

Logistics Management. He holds a bachelor's degree in Air Traffic Control 

from the CAAC University in Tianjin and an MBA from the City University 

of Seattle. 
- 3 - ACT Airlines 

Amendment

Exhibit 5 

DGCA- Recognized Accountable Manager and “Postholders”

Orhan Sivrikaya - Managing Director/Accountable Manager* 

 Future Board Member (see above) 

Mr. Sivrikaya joined ACT Airlines in August 2012 after a 20-year career in 

Turkey and Canada as a Turkish Airlines executive in such positions as Chief 

Commercial Officer and SVP Network Planning and Revenue Management. 

He holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Industrial Engineering from Boğaziçi and 

Marmara Universities and is a candidate for a doctorate in Business 

Administration from Okan University. 

M. Celal Karabaş- Flight Operations Manager 

Capt. Karabaş joined ACT Airlines in 2006 from MNG, where he was the 

deputy flight operations manager. He served in the Turkish Air Force for 22 

years and from 1993 to 2006 had been a pilot and manager for MNG and 

other Turkish airlines. 

Öncer Yalçın Tatcı - Technical Manager* 

Mr. Tatcı joined ACT Airlines in 2006 from Turkish Aerospace Industries and 

has worked as an engineer since 1999. He holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in 

Aeronautical Engineering from İstanbul Technical University.

M. Abdullah Çitçi - Quality Manager 

Mr. Çitçi joined ACT Airlines in 2008 after three years with as a specialist 

and auditor with the flight standards department of the Turkish SHGM 

(DGCA). He studied public finance at Afyon Kocatepe University. 

Taner Gökbul – Training Manager 

Capt. Gökbul is an experienced pilot who served 21 years in the Turkish Air 

Force and has flown in commercial aviation since 1995; he joined ACT from 

MNG in 2006. He graduated from the Turkish Air Force Academy. 

Nihat Yilmaz - Safety Management System Manager* 

Capt. Yilmaz, previously a pilot with ACT, assumed his current position in 

2012. After service in the Turkish Air Force, he spent 11 years as a pilot and 

manager with MNG and other Turkish airlines before joining ACT in 2006. 

He holds degrees in business administration from the Turkish Army War 

College and in law from Ankara University. 

Erol Erten – Security Manager 

Capt. Erten, previously a pilot with ACT, assumed his current position in 

2007. He flew for MNG and other Turkish airlines for 11 years after a 23-
- 4 - ACT Airlines 

Amendment

Exhibit 5 

year aviation career with the Turkish Air Force and Navy. He is a graduate 

of the Turkish Naval Academy in İstanbul. 

Nilgün Zeynep Körpe - Coordination & Ground Ops. Manager 

Ms. Körpe joined the airline in 2006 from MNG, where she was the deputy 

manager of operations coordination. 

N. Selcuk Akbiyik – Commercial Manager* 

Mr. Akbiyik joined ACT in 2006 from MNG Airlines, where he held a similar 

position. He holds a journalism degree from Marmara University. 

Other Managers 

Wang Ziwei - Chief Financial Officer 

Mr. Wang, a Chinese citizen, has been involved in the management of various 

HNA Group business activities since 1999. He holds a certificate from 

Hunan University's International Business College. 

Dong Zhengli – Vice President for Administration* 

Mr. Dong, a Chinese citizen, has also been involved in the management of 

various HNA Group business activities since 2002. He holds MBAs from the 

Harbin Institute of Technology and the City University of Seattle. 

Notes: Two individuals identified in the original application are not included 

in this updated list. Racih Tokaç, former Deputy CEO, has left the company. 

Fatih Bayram remains a consultant to ACT Airlines but does not hold a 

position with the company.