Flight Review: Turkish Airlines 777-300ER Business Class from Istanbul to Delhi

Flight Review: Turkish Airlines 777-300ER Business Class from Istanbul to Delhi

Flight Information
Date
: September 4, 2017
Flight No.: TK716
Route: Istanbul Ataturk to Delhi Indira Gandhi International
Airline: Turkish Airlines
Type: Boeing 777-300ER
Registration: TC-LKB
ATD: 8:38PM
ATA: 5:06AM+1
Flight Duration: 5 hrs 58 min

My round-the-world trip with Star Alliance came to an end with a Turkish Airlines flight between Istanbul and Delhi. The flight was operated by a Boeing 777-300ER – same as the previous flight – however, the seating configuration was slightly different.

Chaotic Boarding at Istanbul Ataturk

After spending some time in the Turkish Airlines lounge, I headed towards the flight’s departure gate. It was at the far end of the terminal, and it took good 20 minutes of walking to reach.

Keep in mind that, you can also access three other lounges at the airport (as well as hundreds more around the world) with a Priority Pass membership.

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Turkish Airlines Boeing 777-300ER at Gate in Istanbul

Turkish Airlines Boeing 777-300ER at gate waiting for the flight to Delhi.

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By the time I got to the gate, economy class boarding had already started, and there was no priority lane for Star Alliance Gold members. As such, I got at the end of the very long economy class queue.

The long queue combined with the tiny gate area provided for a not-so-pleasant experience. In fact, even though Ataturk has what I consider to be the best business class lounge in the world, the terminal itself is seriously overcrowded and a bit of a zoo.

At the same time, at least it is kept clean and offers decent facilities.

Turkish Airlines Old Generation Business Class Seat

Unlike the terminal, the business class cabin was quite empty, and so – luckily – even by the time boarding was completed, I had no neighbor.

[one_half padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines 777-300ER Business Class Cabin

Turkish Airlines 777-300ER business class cabin.

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[one_half_last padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines 777-300ER Business Class Cabin

My seat.

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[full_width padding=”10px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines 777-300ER Business Class Seats

Turkish Airlines business class seats.

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With everyone settled, the cabin crew went around the business class cabin offering welcome drinks. I chose their excellent rose sherbet.

[full_width padding=”10px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines Welcome Drink

Rose sherbet welcome drink.

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Before continuing, I want to note that the aircraft I was flying on was originally delivered to Kenya Airways in 2014. However, since Kenya Airways used to have the same business class seat type as Turkish Airlines, it was hard to notice much difference from the 777 I flew between San Francisco and Istanbul.

Just as on my previous flight, the seats were very spacious. And, at the same time, the window seats didn’t offer direct aisle access. Because of that, the fact that I had no neighbor made quite a difference in how comfortable the flight felt.

[one_half padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines Personal Screen

The window seats did not offer direct aisle access.

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[one_half_last padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]Ottoman

Large ottoman with storage space underneath.

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[full_width padding=”10px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines Business Class Legroom

The legroom was incredible.

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[one_half padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]Seat Controls

Seat controls.

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[one_half_last padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]IFE Screen

IFE screen with Japanese main menu.

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[one_half padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines IFE Remote

Front side of the IFE controller..

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[one_half_last padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]IFE Remote

Back side of the IFE controller.

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Also, interestingly, the amenity kit offered on this flight was different from the one on the earlier flight. On the longer flight, Bentley amenity kits were provided. On this flight, a Furla pouch containing Institut Karite cosmetics was provided.

[one_half padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines Furla Amenity Kit

Furla amenity kit.

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[one_half_last padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines Furla Amenity Kit

It contained a sleeping mask, socks, as well as…

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[full_width padding=”10px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines Amenity Kit Business Class

…a denta kit and Institut Karite items.

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Simple Dinner After Take-Off

After take-off, I enjoyed night views of Istanbul, and had a glass of lemonade which came with macadamia nuts.

[one_half padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]Night Istanbul

View of Istanbul after take-off with Bosphorus in the middle.

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Nuts and Drink

Lemonade and nuts.

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Then, it was dinner time. The menu read as follows:

[full_width padding=”10px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines Business Class Drink Menu

Drink menu.

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[full_width padding=”10px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines Business Class Meal Menu

Meal menu.

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If you read my previous review, you will be able to tell the significant difference in the meal offering. The menu cards were much smaller on this flight, and the options were fairly limited. The food quality was quite decent as with all the other Turkish Airlines flights I took, but given that the flight was almost six-hours long, I expected much more.

Just as a point of comparison, when I took Etihad Airways flight between Abu Dhabi and Delhi – half the distance of this flight – I was offered two choices of appetizers, three choices for the main, as well as two choices of dessert.

Going back to the dinner on this flight, I went with the spicy chicken brochette which was juicy and tender.

[full_width padding=”10px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines Medium Haul Business Class Appetizer

Appetizer.

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[full_width padding=”10px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines Medium Haul Business Class Main

Spicy chicken brochette.

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I was very disappointed with the dessert, though, since it consisted just of jalebi – a traditional Indian fried dough with sweet syrup inside.

And, surprisingly, there was no butter to go with the bread. When I asked for it, the crew brought it over from economy class. Perhaps, they forgot to load it for business class…

Comfortable Full-Flat Bed All the Way Until Delhi

Immediately after the dinner I went to sleep.

While the meal was simple, very comfortable bedding – just like on the long-haul flight before – was provided. On a side note, if you want to bring your own pillow, make sure to check out our guide to choosing travel pillows.

[full_width padding=”10px 10px 10px 10px”]Turkish Airlines Business Class Bedding

Seat turned into a bed.

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When I woke up after a comfortable sleep, we were already getting close to Delhi – and it was still dark outside with the full moon being the only light source.

In no time, we landed at Indira Gandhi airport bringing not only the Turkish Airlines flight, but also the whole round-the-world trip to an end.

[one_half padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]IFE Moving Map

Approaching Delhi.

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[one_half_last padding=”010px 10px 10px 10px”]Landing in Delhi

View of nighttime Delhi.

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Turkish Airlines 777-300ER Istanbul – Delhi Business Class Summary

Since I took this flight after taking the longer flight from San Francisco to Istanbul, it was more of a “shadow” than the main experience I looked forward to.

Still, the wonderful crew and comfortable seat made for an enjoyable flight. I found the seat slightly more comfortable than on the previous flight. But, I wish Turkish Airlines put a bit more thought into the catering on the route. (The quantity of food was no different from a two-hour Cairo–Istanbul flight that I took in the past.)

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