Review of Turkish Airlines flight Istanbul Los Angeles in Business

Airline Turkish Airlines
Flight TK009
Class Business
Seat 2K
Aircraft Boeing 777-300ER
Flight time 13:55
Take-off 04 Jan 13, 12:50
Arrival at 04 Jan 13, 16:45
TK   #14 out of 94 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 775 reviews
lagentsecret
By 19561
Published on 7th September 2013
It took me one hour at the Hotel Transit desk and then a minibus drove me to the Hilton Garden Golden Horn.

It was the first time I saw a Turkish driver that respected speed limits: without doubt he should know that the warnings
for radar checks were not fictitious ;)

The room was very nice but the buffet breakfast was less good than the Ramada's.
In addition, a large group of Chinese tourists had filled the breakfast room which was not very large.


Very positive : free wifi was available

At 10 o'clock the next morning a van picked me up, then went to another hotel before it dropped all passengers off at the airport after a 50 minutes drive.

After a first security check to enter the airport, I headed to security and immigration checks dedicated to TK's lounge

As the day before there is only one person ahead of me and the astonishment of the immigration officer at my boarding pass already quite buffered, that made him to take a little longer (but he did not ask any questions, he will only write the time of my first entry).
photo 201301LAS_0148 (Copier)photo 201301LAS_0149 (Copier)

I was not really hungry but didn't want to disappoint the Do & Co cooks, so I ate a little bit of Apfel strudel and cheesecake.
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The lounge was still great even though I noticed increased attendance: anyway, yet I've never had a problem finding a place
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Corporate picture
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It changed a few minutes later so here also the last one
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It was already time to go at the gate because there were additional checks for flights to U.S. destinations.
On the way I was still on time to spotter slightly

Sun facing, it made difficult to recognize this Air Azerbaijan
photo 201301LAS_0155 (Copier)

This MH
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or this Air Jordan that I'd have the luck to review later
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By the other side it is easier to recognize the MS
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and A320 Air Scone ;)
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Here was a brother of my 77W which will fly me to the City of Angels
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Scone Air forced its way among the Turkish tails
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I arrived in the boarding area where there is first an examination on the contents of hand luggage
and check of visa / ESTA

I was not able to spot my 77W at the gate : I had to wait the boarding and to take a picture from the jetbridge

Boarding began almost immediately by calling families and business class but there was a big rush
and everyone was rushing in the jetbridge

This was my 77W: Rumeli's first flight on 24/11/2010
Disappointment because there was no wifi on board: (
photo 201301LAS_0168 (Copier)

Unfortunately I wasn't able to have a better picture

I managed to slip (yes it is possible) in the crowd and I get the first in the Business cabin


My seat 2K : full flat bed
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Pitch (sorry my legs were not long enough)
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View from my seat
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Here came the Air Jordan on its way to leave !
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The remote control and the outlet
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The Ottoman (what could be more natural for TK) with locations for storage and slippers
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The seat main control
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The table
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Our neighbor
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Headphone in its storage
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Welcome beverage : another one of those delicious juice lemon / mint leaves
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Push back


Safety screen
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Long haulage


The TK A340 in Star Alliance livery
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Unknown to me : Tahran Air
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a TK with a funny livery
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The TK Star Alliance takes off
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Another company that I've never heard of before : Bosphorus European
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Take-off

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Ataturk Airport


Distribution of an oshibori
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My cute neighbor sitting in 1K, Leadership's terror, will be very nice and even not cry
Note that she was traveling with her mother and her father who was travelling in PE or eco but was able to access the Business cabin throughout the flight
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Distribution of the menu, the wine list and the amenity kit


Wine list : not very brilliant except Gosset Brut Grande Reserve which will be my choice
photo 201301LAS_0226 (Copier)photo 201301LAS_0227 (Copier)photo 201301LAS_0229 (Copier)

The Amenity kit is branded Crabtree & Evelyn (Is it a brand ?) Such as the cosmetics that it contains and can be used as cover for tablet
photo 201301LAS_0379 (Copier)photo 201301LAS_0381 (Copier)

Content
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Always snowy landscapes
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Orders by the onboard Do & Co chef

Aperitif
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The Amuse Bouche is very good but there is no more nuts?
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The table is set, choice of hot breads
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The beautiful arc we'll fly with some night over Greenland
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The appetizers trolley
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My choice was an excellent hummus and some shrimps
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The trolley service offers more choices but the presentation is not as good as a plated appetizer in galley

Then the Wedding soup (Turkish specialty): I would have eaten more ;)
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And tournedos: good, not dry, but I would have preferred a little more raw
The stuffed eggplant was exceptionally good
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The toilet where I found a diaper belonging probably to my neighbor 1K :)
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The onboard chef for desserts
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The trolley with cheeses, fruits and desserts
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Same comment as for inputs: the presentation is less beautiful than a plate erected in galley
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For dessert my ranking: lemon cheesecake and chocolate mousse, profiteroles and ice cream with mango really too trivial

Then pass another trolley with coffee / tea and digestive

Distribution of small bottle of water and the cabin is darkened

I prepared my list of favorite music and I positioned the Panasonic IFE on airshow
photo 201301LAS_0000 (Copier)

This 77W has two cameras that can show outside views

IFE has crashed but it will restart itself
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The remote is displaying the time remaining to the destination
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I opened my window when peeking over Greenland but it is night
A little later over northern Canada
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Two hours before landing lights are on dim mode
Distribution of an oshibori
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Choice between water and a very good quality orange juice (with pulp)
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Cabin
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I allow myself a quick photo of the GE90 and non winglet before closing the window
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The snack tray: always two appetizers, a hot entree with two choices, cheese and dessert
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Some croutons
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An error on the menu, this was not a rice cake but a delicious tiramisu
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We flow over Salt Lake City ;)
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The Do & Co cook to offer tea or coffee
The kofte arrived : a anecdote my neighbor had forgotten that there was still hot food and had already eaten his dessert
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We continued our journey over beautiful snowy landscapes



The always faithful GE90s

 
An airport ONT? SNA?
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We flow now over a suburb of LA
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Downtown LA
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Approach to the airport
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Landing


Rolling near an A345 SQ
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AA : I really want to fly them after reading the FRs of Kim II Flav and Damien ;)
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an UA
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A thought for our Tahiti's friends
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and of course for our Taiwan's ones
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The route we followed
photo TK009
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Verdict

Turkish Airlines

9.1/10
Cabin8.0
Cabin crew10.0
Entertainment/wifi9.0
Meal/catering9.5

Turkish Airlines Lounge

10.0/10
Comfort10.0
Meal/catering10.0
Entertainment/wifi10.0
Services10.0

Istanbul - ISL

9.4/10
Efficiency9.5
Access9.0
Services9.0
Cleanliness10.0

Los Angeles - LAX

8.8/10
Efficiency8.0
Access9.0
Services9.0
Cleanliness9.0

Conclusion

Great crew for a great flight with a great Do & Co catering

The only weakness is the 2-3-2 cabin configuration

The TK IST Business lounge is in my opinion the best *Alliance Business Lounge

Information on the route Istanbul (ISL) Los Angeles (LAX)

Les contributeurs de Flight-Report ont posté 6 avis concernant 1 compagnies sur la ligne Istanbul (ISL) → Los Angeles (LAX).


Useful

La compagnie qui obtient la meilleure moyenne est Turkish Airlines avec 8.1/10.

La durée moyenne des vols est de 13 heures et 53 minutes.

  More information

11 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 86698 by
    Papoumada GOLD 7321 Comments
    No photos but the photobucket logo... :-(

    Only the videos work.

    Hope you can fix it soon.
  • Comment 86708 by
    AirCanada881 1616 Comments
    The photos worked yesterday but today indeed the photos are not working, I suppose we can thank Photobucket's greedy paws for this!

    Superb FR as always, having recently flown TK I can definitely say it was one of my best experiences ever. Do you still stand by your opinion that the J product is not good value for money compared to their comfort class product?

    Thanks again!
  • Comment 86783 by
    indianocean SILVER 7572 Comments
    Wonderful report as usual.
    The menu is tantalizing and the food looks absolutely delicious.
    TK utterly deserves its Best European Airline award.
    Thanx for this experience
  • Comment 86840 by
    A380B77W 4295 Comments
    This is an awesome FR !!!!!! Thanks you :D

    Amazing wing view <3 and great service by TK !

    Beautiful spotting at LAX !!

    The airports before Downtown LA are San Bernardino and Ontario.
  • Comment 86843 by
    jam 2001 Comments
    Thank you for this wonderful FR as usual ,

    Very nice pictures ,nice to have had the Azerbaijan 767 ,

    very good catering EK , I love their catering on board,

    À bientôt


  • Comment 86845 by
    KévinDC TEAM SILVER 6658 Comments
    Thanks for this beautiful and comprehensive report! The catering looks very good and is well presented. Beautiful aerial photos! knowing your habits I'm shocked that's all you ate in the lounge :-)
    p.s. the diaper in the lav...EEEEEWWWWWW!!! Even in J people can be disgusting. Seriously...there's a trash bin 2 feet away--use it! YUCK lol
  • Comment 86846 by
    Papoumada GOLD 7321 Comments
    A real 007-like report.

    The grasitude food is gorgeous, the crew does a great job.

    Maybe the red wine list may be improved.

    Scenic views from the sky.

    Thanks for that photobucket-free report.
  • Comment 87429 by
    ROBT760 1 Comments
    Thanks for sharing, nice report.

    The airports you flew over just before landing were:

    Slightly A shaped configuration is SBD (Formerly Norton Air Force Base) San Bernardino, CA
    Mostly Parallel Runways = ONT Ontario, CA
  • Comment 89193 by
    jetsetpanda 2283 Comments
    Wonderful report with amazing pictures. Istanbul is one of my favorite cities and TK's catering is one of the best in the industry.

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