Will TK (Turkish Airlines) ever fly to PER, MEL or elsewhere in Oz?

[dajop]

Even if they fly to AU, one issue to consider is that the IST - Europe leg will likely be on a narrowbody or a short-haul configured aircraft.

This is a deal breaker for me unless prices are extremely good to make up for this or I want a stopover in Turkey. Whether the general population will care is another story.

General population usually wouldn’t care as much. But that aside, the whole point of would be to offer a wider range of single stop destinations, many of which wouldn’t be available on wide body anyway. And a lot of these in the 1-2 hr flying range of IST so narrow body being Ok for shorter fights. Even QR has quite a few narrow body services into secondary Europe ports, with longer flights than you would see on TK.

A bit like SYD-DFW, which transfers to predominantly AA narrow bodies.

 

[RooFlyer]

Agree with the above. Oz to IST would be a terrific and very efficient springboard into most of Europe. Virtually everywhere with no backtracking. Although of course here on AFF backtracking is not always a negative .

I would be OK with a narrow body for a few hours as the final leg, or Istanbul is always a good spot for a stopover (bar when the President sends the military out )

 

[Forg]

Yes, Turkey is, or was, a great place to visit, which we first did in 1996. They were then a very open and welcoming people in those days. The then story was that if the Government of the day tried to bring in fundamentalist rules, the Army would step in and dismiss them. Have visited 3 times in all over the years, not sure about going again with the current leader though.

My wife tells me, after a 2017 trip to Istanbul … you don’t want to be female & travelling alone in Turkey. She didn’t necessarily feel threatened, any more than an irrelevant piece of rubbish might feel threatened; men would just push her out of the way, for example, if she were in a queue for something, or about to walk through a doorway.

 

[moa999]

Can't see them flying as fifth freedom. Just doesn't make sense - they can't offer the same connections as the home carrier, and no-one is going to choose a 2-stop connection to Europe versus all the 1-stop alternatives in Asia and the ME.

With the right aircraft, (and they have and have orders for 359s and 789s) I could see direct flights which would make some sense.

 

[RooFlyer]

Can't see them flying as fifth freedom. Just doesn't make sense - they can't offer the same connections as the home carrier, and no-one is going to choose a 2-stop connection to Europe versus all the 1-stop alternatives in Asia and the ME.

Perhaps most wouldn’t, but some would and some would have to, as those outside the major capital cities, always do.

To get business off Qantas on the way to London, they would only have to offer a half competent call centre with wait times less than an hour

 

[Melburnian1]

Even if they fly to AU, one issue to consider is that the IST - Europe leg will likely be on a narrowbody or a short-haul configured aircraft.

This is a deal breaker for me unless prices are extremely good to make up for this or I want a stopover in Turkey. Whether the general population will care is another story.

That's (often?) not true for IST - LHR as it uses a B77W for at least one daily flight.

Most times 'the general population' wouldn't even know on what type of aircraft they were flying (unless informed by the airline) and as you state, wouldn't care.

 

[Must...Fly!]

Also TK's Business on narrow body isn't your typical "eurobusiness" type scam

 

[frodo]

Fair points, it probably depends whereabouts in Europe you're flying to but agreed on the increased range of secondary destinations.

 

[Tiki]

EK used to have a DXB-SIN-BNE 5th freedom route. I don't see why TK couldn't have a similar route maybe via BKK or KUL. And more routes into beautiful Turkey are always welcome!

 

[AIRwin]

EK used to have a DXB-SIN-BNE 5th freedom route.

And DXB-SIN-MEL

 

[jb747]

These ‘freedoms‘ don’t automatically exist. They are still subject to negotiation between the subject countries. So for a TK flight to operate via Singapore, it would require agreement from all three controlling bodies. As they’re a partner with SQ, I’d guess that it would reduce SQ’s allowed number of seats, though in the current environment, seats far exceed the number of bums.

It would be much simpler to have direct flights, but they have their own issues. The only easy one is Istanbul - Perth. To the major east coast destinations it’s a couple of hundred miles longer than the Perth - London route. The upshot of that is that they’d tend to be fuel/weight critical, and for that reason would be best targeted at premium travellers and would cost a premium. The maths might work, but I can’t see it.

 

[Melburnian1]

To the major east coast destinations it’s a couple of hundred miles longer than the Perth - London route. The upshot of that is that they’d tend to be fuel/weight critical, and for that reason would be best targeted at premium travellers and would cost a premium. The maths might work, but I can’t see it.

One website claimed re Oz east coast, IST - MEL was achievable (implying with no or not too many seats 'sacrificed') but BNE and SYD, no.

 

[k_sheep]

I was booked to fly TK for the first time in April 2020, and we all know how that went. But their refund was instantaneous, no questions asked, after a <10s wait on hold. Stunning service.

I will definitely be lining up to try them again thanks to that superior experience, without ever setting foot on the plane.

 

[Melburnian1]

I was booked to fly TK for the first time in April 2020, and we all know how that went. But their refund was instantaneous, no questions asked, after a <10s wait on hold. Stunning service.

I will definitely be lining up to try them again thanks to that superior experience, without ever setting foot on the plane.

If TK ever decides to even only fly to PER, it'd start an even bigger fare war than what we're used to as competitors would regard TK's extremely extensive route network as a threat, given TK seems to like offering good frequencies and expansion.

 

[Melburnian1]

Istanbul Airport's CEO (Operations) said in March 2021:

"...However, the airport's ambitions extend further still. Indeed, it also wishes to add another continent to Turkish Airlines' diverse repertoire in the form of Oceania. Samsunlu states,

"It is a high priority for us to connect Istanbul Airport with Australia, and provide access for Australian travellers to 40+ Turkish destinations and 120+ European destinations via IST. This is the only continent that Turkish Airlines doesn’t fly to."

 

[Must...Fly!]

It would be quite the marketing boon. Though this was said before the government (president) decided domestic economic suicide was the right path for Turkey.

 

[Melburnian1]

Inetresting that TK continues to maintain a sales office in Sydney.

 

[AIRwin]

Inetresting that TK continues to maintain a sales office in Sydney.

And EgyptAir in MEL

 

[AIRwin]

More talk of launch in 2026/2027:

Turkish Airlines Targets Nonstop Australia Flights

Australia is a whitespot in the carrier’s network of more than 300 destinations worldwide.

www.routesonline.com

 

[Gold Member]

Review: what it’s like to fly Turkish Airlines business class

The long-awaited arrival of Turkish Airlines brings fresh five-star style to the skies…

www.executivetraveller.com

I am reluctant to give ET some clicks but I can’t find it reported anywhere else, yet.

I’m excited about this route if it comes to fruition, especially for Melbourne. Firstly, we have another points redeeming option ex-Aus. And I’m hopeful that we can even blow our increasingly worthless Lifemiles on them, let alone *A partners. And then of course there’s the fifth freedom flight options with points redemption to SE Asia countries for cheap ticket origination to Europe/U.S.