After our long flight from Chicago to Istanbul on the Turkish Airlines 787 in business class, we connected onward to Berlin. I was pleased to have a wide body plane for this relatively short trip. We flew the Turkish Airlines A330. Our business class cabin is in the older 2-2-2 configuration. Minimal privacy, but open seats mean unconfined leg space. Compared to “business class” which is only an economy seat with blocked middle seat on many other European carriers, this is a nice way to fly within Europe. The flight from Istanbul to Berlin is less than 3 hours.
Turkish has a few configurations of the A330, both -200 and -300 series, but the lie flat seat we enjoyed is far more common on the bulk of Turkish A333. James reviewed a A330 herringbone seat, but that configuration is no longer in Turkish service. This is an old seat, with minimal privacy, but definitely comfortable. I was originally sitting in the window seat in front of my wife and daughter, but ended up in the aisle behind them. Agents in Chicago reprinted our boarding passes on Turkish card stock, but were unable to print mine for the last leg. Not a big deal, but a bit odd. For a more detailed view of this A33o configuration, see this Turkish Airlines youtube link here
This will be a quick review, as it was a short flight, but distinct from my longer flight so decided to separate it out into this post.
I didn’t get good cabin photos, due to being among the last to board, so here are some photos from James which show a similar seat, although these look to be on a 777, and a slightly older version, but you get the idea. On the A330, the ottoman opens at the top for extra storage, and the is slightly more of a privacy divider between seats. Still, a wide enough seat that goes fully flat and a slight shell, with more privacy when recline.
Service on Turkish Airlines A330 Business Class to Berlin
As ever Turkish excels at meal service. The seat may be out of date, but food is always tasty. I like this style of cuisine, and it is usually executed well. Not as elaborate as the long flight from North America, but pretty solid nonetheless. I skipped breakfast before arrival on the long flight from Chicago. With our delayed arrival we didn’t have much time to visit the lounges in Istanbul. That meant I was looking forward to this meal on board. Here are menus for the morning flight to Berlin:
The meal is served on a tray, with the first course coming out with drinks and selection from a bread basket.
For my main course, I went with the scrambled eggs, maybe a slightly more western choice, but cheese pastry definitely felt Turkish.
The older IFE interface still has extensive selection. As I recall I watched a few episodes of Season 8 of Game of Thrones. “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” was one of few feel good moments for that show, especially in the final season. Of course there is the whole vibe that the world is likely ending soon for many of the characters featured. But I digress…After the meal, I reclined my seat and napped for a little while hoping to be more rested as well as beat jet lag as much as I could now that the sun was up and it is morning here in Europe
Final thoughts Turkish Airlines A330 business class to Berlin
Just like that, we were descending on approach to Berlin. A solid product for a sub-3 hour flight. Service was friendly, but nothing that remarkable. It has been a long while since my last flight on Turkish. And especially within Europe, it continues to lead the way compared to other options. Much better premium class seating, and the wide body configuration is a plus. Food service on Turkish continues to stand out. But more importantly, we were in Berlin and vacation for my family and the marathon for me.
