Task Force DL

Good Morning Folks,

Sorry to keep bashing TK this week - But I am trying to figure out if I should keep giving these guys a chance or not. So, I welcome feedback. The J product really seems sub-par and is now (IMO) even below the quality of the US carriers. I just wrapped up my 12th flight of 2017 in TK J. While my ~GBP2k J ticket from LGW-TPE was a great value (about 20% cheaper than BR/TG/Others), the J service on TK was "consistent" again.

By "consistent" I mean "consistently poor":

1) I had to seek out FAs six times during the flight to ask for water. Each time they seemed highly annoyed that I had taken them away from their newspapers/tablets. Sorry but a 180ml bottle of water does not cut it for a 12 hour long haul flight...
2) I was *NEVER* asked if I wanted a drink refilled on either of my long haul flights IST-TPE. Not once.
3) The cabin is insanely hot - Felt like about 28C. I was in a short sleeve shirt and was still boiling. Several people complained to the crew with no resolution.
4) Wrong meals delivered - This has actually happened on nearly every flight that I have taken this year.
5) Lounge in IST - The shower still eludes me, even though the lounge was dead when I arrived. I was #1 on the list with the stupid pager for over an hour. Eventually I just turned the thing in and retrieved my boarding pass without a shower AGAIN. This is the 6th time this has happened. This never happens in the DL Skyclub... and that is a sorry comparison.

Bottom line - I paid for a lie flat seat and that is what I got. Everything else felt somewhere between US Airways and BA...

On the upside, the new 777-300ER entertainment system refresh is pretty nice. The outbound aircraft did not have it but the inbound did.

TFD

tcm

I certainly wouldn't rate TK J a second rate product. Not in the air. Putting aside issues related to their IT, Call Centre, IRROPS handling etc. The only service shortcomings I would agree with you is in regard to refills and hot cabin temperatures. We even had a thread about this several years ago. Whenever I press the call button to ask for something, the flight crew are always happy to oblige. It has been quite a long time since I had a bad crew on TK long haul or short haul. You do get sometimes the elusive Pursers though Regarding, the IST TK Lounge, for a business lounge I don't think I would be exaggerating if I'd say it is one of the best despite being rather packed from time to time. But, hey, still a oasis of calm compared to the what was the LX Senator lounge in ZRH the other day. Regarding the showers, can't say anything, haven't had to use them for a long time. The hard product is also great, bar the 2-3-2 on the 777s. Hope they will update their product to a all aisle access design in the future. On intra-Europa J and Y, their onboard product is without competition. Finally, sorry for the long post, In fairness TK IMHO, still offers a very good premium product in the sky at usually very competitive prices. My cents

IAN-UK

I've had good few issues with TK, but the only in-flight service-related one is the protracted, fully-fledged meal that's served after 2 am departures. Apart from that i find cabin crew by and large helpful and willing: never had any problem with the response to a call button.



Over time the lounge experience has become just a little jaded, but I still enjoy it. I've never used the showers there, but i'm well prepared to believe that getting one can be a taxing process .

DaveS

I regularly use he showers and have never had a problem getting one. Usually I have to wait half an hour with the pager, but never a problem. I do agree with the complaint about cabin temperature though.

kai.lileboo

I completly agree with you in almost all fields. They grew too quickly and were unable to train staff properly. Althoug I experienced very difficult comunication, old or crampy hard product and of course very special cabin crew and hot hot cabin temperature.
That's why I stopped flying with them long haul.
The prices have gone up, the mileage earnings down...but hey, if you paid 20% then is ok, it would be highly stressful if you had paid very high price and the service would't have been up to your expectations.
And yes, they are Turkish, the elegance and a special touch towards the passengers...this is only a dream!

TPJ

Never experienced this. Very often they leave small bottles of water in the self service bar area between two J-class cabins (right aisle).

Yes - you have to ask for a refill. This is like this with TK - you can either accept it or move on... All my requests are always accommodated without any problem.

Agree - can happen.

Really? On nearly every flight? Happened to me maybe once...

Use the shower facility downstairs. I never have to wait for shower more than 45 minutes there, even during the peak hours.

sfvoyage

I had 4 long haul segments on TK J in the past couple of months and wasn't expecting much based on comments on this board. However, I was pleasantly delighted and thought TK's J was on par with many top airlines. I didn't encounter any of OP's issues, except the cabin was indeed a tad warm. Service was friendly and efficient, and at times warm and smiling, depending on the crew.

Regarding showers at TK lounge at IST, one time I had a 10-min wait, the other time I was redirected downstairs and had no wait.

sazizi

I agree with the OP, service is really going down. Flew IST-MIA in J and thought the in-flight service was poor. Had to request small items multiple times in order to get them...

airoli

Not sure if there is a declining trend. Most of what the OP comments on is reflected in my observations from 2 years ago.

gpia

Just picked TK for IST-HKG to use up the Elite Plus upgrade cert. Haven't flown them in ~2 years, and am shocked to read about the cabin temp. That def wasn't an issue before. Huge deal for me, and a reason why I don't fly JL. So here's me hoping you're all exaggerating

Task Force DL

The cabin temp really is insane - I had this problem this year on:

IST-BKK (4 times)

IST-TPE (4 times)

IST -LHR/LGW (4 times)

And there are no air vents on most of the long haul aircraft. Combine that with lack of water service and it is a downright uncivilised experience.

TFD

gpia

Suppose i'll be changing into shorts and bringing a couple of bottles of water along from the lounge. Thank you for the heads up, this would have completely caught me off guard...

airoli

Cabin temp has always been very high on TK - it's a cultural thing. On my last flight I saw the cabin ambiance panel at door 1L had temperature set to 26C. And my fellow Turkish passengers in J wrapped themselves in blankets...

So I assume that on a majority vote, it won't change.

GRUflyer

I agree on the cabin temperature thing. I hate it so bad that I usually think twice about booking TK for this reason alone - and when I do I make sure I bring my PJs and a very light T shirt and only use the blanket around the waist area, as to make sure nothing gets exposed during the flight.
The cabin temperature is the one thing I like about flying AA.


I do, however, have to say that TK can be a very good value for money. When they are selling tickets for 30% lower than AF or EK, I will gladly book them. Otherwise, I will rather stick to real top notch Business Class: SQ, CX, new AF, EK, QR and JL mostly.

tcm

From a recent verified Skytrax review by a Greek pax