After a wonderful visit with friends and family in Almaty, we flew Turkish Airlines’ Airbus A330-200 in Business Class to Istanbul for the final phase of our trip.
Booking our Turkish Airlines Flight
After Almaty, we planned to spend the final portion of our trip in Istanbul. Air Astana, Turkish Airlines, and Pegasus Airlines all fly directly between the two cities. Air Astana and Turkish Airlines serve Istanbul Airport (IST), the city’s primary international airport while Pegasus Airlines serves the smaller Sabiha Gökçen International Airport (SAW) which is predominantly used by low cost carriers.
Since we were flying with ATX Jr. as a lap infant, we wanted to go Business Class. A quick check of Google Flights showed availability on both Turkish and Air Astana with similar prices and departure times.
Air Astana typically operates an Airbus A321neo on the route while Turkish operates a mix of planes including the Boeing 737-8 and Airbus A330. With pricing and timing relatively similar, I took the widebody with (almost) lie flat seats.
We ended up paying $1,021.61 per person for our one way tickets between Almaty and Istanbul. I put these tickets on my American Express Platinum Card which earned me 5x points on airfare.
Check-In
Our flight was scheduled to depart Almaty International Airport (ALA) at 6:40a. We left The Ritz-Carlton just before 4:30a and were being dropped off curbside 30 minutes later.
The Turkish Airlines check-in counters were located at the far end of the departures hall. At this early hour there was only one passenger ahead of us in the Business Class line. A quick check of our documents and we had our boarding passes issued for Istanbul. We weren’t able to check-in for the flight online with a lap infant.
Both passport control and security were extremely quick with no lines and we found our selves airside five minutes after we arrived at the airport.
Pre-Flight
There is a contract lounge at Almaty International Airport but, unfortunately, Turkish Airlines doesn’t pay for Business Class passengers to access it. The Extime Lounge is also a part of Priority Pass but American Express cardholders are excluded.
Fortunately, the new international terminal is quite nice and has floor to ceiling windows which provide a great view of the ramp. We grabbed a coffee and took a seat by the windows and watched a stunning sunrise over the airport. I also managed to get a peek at our plane which was carrying the Turkish Airlines retro livery.
Though ATX Jr. was too small to use it, there is also a kids area in this portion of the airport which seemed like a great spot to get some energy out before a flight.
Boarding our Turkish Airlines Airbus A330-200 Business Class Flight
Our flight to Istanbul was departing from Gate 205. Boarding began promptly at 6:00a with Business Class being invited to board first.
Turkish Airlines
TK 351
ALA-IST (Almaty International – Istanbul)
Seat: 12C (Business)
A330-200 (TH-JNC) Turkish Airlines Retro Livery
Scheduled: 6:40a-11:20a
Actual: 6:25a-10:42a
After a quick scan of our boarding passes we headed down the jet bridge and boarded through door 2L. Our departure gate was equipped with dual jet bridges but only one was in use.
We left ATX Jr.’s gate-checked stroller at the end of the jet bridge and we made a left into the Business Class cabin and our home for the next six hours.
Turkish Airlines Airbus A330-200 Business Class Seat
Turkish Airlines has multiple layouts on its Airbus A330-200 aircraft in Business Class but ours was equipped with 18 seats spread across three rows in a 2-2-2 configuration.
I assigned us seats 1J and 1K, the window and aisle pair in the bulkhead row on the right side of the aircraft. While these weren’t the most cutting edge seats on the market, they still folded out into an almost fully flat bed. The seats featured 78″ of pitch and 21″ of width.
Waiting at our seat at boarding was a pillow and a blanket. Thankfully these seats have a large storage compartment as part of the ottoman which was great for storing these items and others throughout the flight.
Each seat was equipped with an 15.4″ touchscreen IFE display and there was also a handheld remote that could be used to change channels.
The tray table was located in the center console separating the two seats. To access it, you had to pull the panel away from the console and then lift the table up and out.
The tray table is one single piece and can not be folded over. However, it can spin 90 degrees and slide back and forth to adjust to the needs of each passenger.
Between the seats was the center console which had a decent sized tray as well as two cupholders. The seat controls were also located here and were easy and intuitive to use.
A divider was located between the two seats. While a 2-2-2 layout isn’t ideal in Business Class, this provided a decent amount of privacy if you find yourself traveling solo.
Near the divider you’ll also find the storage compartment for the IFE remote as well as an individual reading light.
Overall, while I wouldn’t want to fly this product on a long-haul overnight flight, it was more than sufficient for our six hour daytime flight between Almaty and Istanbul.
Departure
While boarding was underway the flight crew came around distributing amenity kits for the flight. The kits featured UNESCO branding and highlighted different areas in Turkey.
The amenity kit was decently well stocked for this short flight and had an eye mask, socks, toothbrush, earplugs, toothpaste, and Ex Nihilo branded lotion and lip balm.
Pre-departure beverages were offered at the gate, with a choice of water, orange juice, mint juice, or raspberry juice. We bot hand coffee from the terminal so we passed on the PDBs.
The menu for the flight was also distributed at the gate and was in both English and Turkish. I was excited to find that our flight was catered for the roundtrip in Istanbul, so we had Do&Co catering for the return.
The boarding door was closed at 6:25a, 15 minutes before our scheduled departure time and the Business Class cabin was only 60% full. We ended up being the only group in the first row. The captain came over the speaker and informed us of our flying time of 5 hours and 30 minutes.
The safety video was screened at the gate and the flight attendants also came around handing out headphones as well as the infant life jacket and seatbelt for ATX Jr. The headphones weren’t great quality but they managed to get the job done.
At 6:35a we pushed back from the gate and began our taxi over to the departure runway. One of my favorite things about traveling to airports in different parts of the world is the variety of airlines. Almaty certainly didn’t disappoint as the plane spotting was great.
We had a short but slow taxi over to our departure runway, Runway 05R, and we were wheels up by 6:45a local time.
In-Flight
There were some moderate bumps as we climbed out of Almaty but things smoothed out a bit within the first few minutes. The flight attendants working our cabin wasted no time and ten minutes after takeoff the breakfast service began with hot towels being distributed. Drink orders were also taken and I asked for a glass of champagne.
Twenty five minutes after takeoff the first course, fresh fruit and a selection of Turkish breakfasts, was served along with a choice of bread from the basket.
Main courses were served ten minutes after the first course. I initially selected the omelet but the crew must have had the count wrong as they came back later stating that the dish was unavailable. I opted instead for the banana bread.
The meal service was completed an hour after take-off with Turkish roasted hazelnuts being distributed to passengers.
With the meal service complete, I headed to check out the Business Class lavatories. Turkish Airlines doesn’t have lavatories in the forward cabin and instead dedicates this space for galley use. The Business Class lavatories are located at the second set of doors between the Business and Economy cabins, though they are dedicated for Business Class passengers.
While the lavatories aren’t anything special, Turkish Airlines did add some toiletries and cologne to make things feel more upscale.
Back at my seat, the crew had made the cabin completely dark to allow passengers to get some sleep. The galley curtains were also closed though they still let a decent amount of light through. Mrs. ATX and ATX Jr. were both asleep so I moved over to 1F to get some work done.
Turkish Airlines offers free Wi-Fi to Business Class passengers and, while I wouldn’t call it fast, it was adequate enough for me to get some work done. The flight crew was great about keeping my champagne and coffee topped up while I worked.
I managed to work for 45 minutes but the early morning wakeup caught up to me and I put the seat into bed mode to try and get some sleep. While I managed to doze off for a bit, I awoke after 45 minutes to some significant turbulence that had us rocking and rolling for 20-30 minutes. The bumps occurred as we were flying over the Caspian Sea but things smoothed out again as we reached Azerbaijan.
With an hour and a half remaining in flight, the cabin lights were turned back on in preparation for the second meal service. Service began with hot towels being distributed.
The secondary meal consisted of a veggie and cheese sandwich. This was served alongside a piece of vanilla and chocolate cake. I also ordered another cup of coffee to accompany it. I didn’t love the snack but it wasn’t terrible, I just had higher hopes for the catering.
With roughly 49 minutes remaining in-flight, the captain announced our descent into Istanbul and the crew began preparing the cabin for arrival.
Arrival
We approached Istanbul from the east, overflying the city, before turning to the north to land at Istanbul Airport (IST)
We landed on Runway 16L at 10:20a local time, which was well ahead of schedule. Once on the ground I got an idea of just how massive the new Istanbul Airport is as we taxied around for more than 20 minutes.
After the prolonged taxi, we ended up getting assigned a bus gate where we parked next to a Turkish Airlines Boeing 777.
After arriving at our hardstand, the flight crew held all of the Economy passengers in order to allow Business Class passengers off first. This also provided me with my first full look at our Airbus A330-200 retro jet.
Since we gate checked ATX Jr.’s stroller, I stayed behind at the plane while Mrs. ATX took him to the terminal on the Business Class bus. Eventually, the stroller came out and I hopped on the bus for the ride over to the terminal.
I was one of the last passengers on the Economy Class bus and still managed to make it to the terminal building ahead of our scheduled arrival time. Stroller in hand, we boarded the bus to campus and passed alongside some unique airlines along the way to the terminal.
Thankfully I was dropped off right next to a passport control window which made it a quick trip through the airport. After retrieving our bags, I made the walk over to the exit doors to meet our Blacklane driver.
Summary
By international Business Class standards Turkish Airlines does not have a competitive hard product on its Airbus A330-200 aircraft. However, for the majority of the routes the airline deploys this fleet type on, it is still a comfortable ride, especially for shorter trips during the day. On a route like this, I would happily fly with Turkish Airlines again.
