The first Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner is set to join national flag carrier Turkish Airlines' (THY) fleet by the end of this month. Dubbed the "dream aircraft," the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner will make its first flight in Turkey from Istanbul to the holiday resort city of Antalya on July 8.
To satisfy its wide-body aircraft needs, THY placed firm orders for 50 new wide-body aircraft with an additional 10 units as optional from both Boeing and Airbus last year. Thus, the carrier will add up to 30 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners and 30 Airbus A350-900s to its fleet, covering 25 firm and five optional orders for each aircraft. The first six aircraft should be delivered this year, with a further 14 in 2020, 10 in 2021, 12 in 2022, 11 in 2023 and seven in 2024.
While the first of the Boeing 787-9 type aircraft, in which composite materials constitute 50 percent of the main structure, including the body and the wings, will join the THY fleet this month, three will join the fleet in July and the remaining two in August.
The first aircraft that THY will take delivery of took its first test flight at Boeing's Everett facilities in Washington. The aircraft, which received TC-LLA tail registration, successfully flew between Everett (PAE) and Moses Lake (MWE) at the Boeing Everett facilities. The aircraft is 63 meters in
length, 60 meters in wingspan, 17 meters in height and has a range of 14,140 kilometers. Boeing 787-type aircrafts consume 20 percent less fuel than today's aircrafts of the same size and can carry between 20 and 45 percent more cargo than other aircrafts.
Shortly after being delivered, THY's first Boeing 787-9 aircrafts will fly in domestic lines and then will be allocated to Bali, Bogota-Panama, Washington and Atlanta lines as well.
According to Demirören News Agency (DHA), THY's first Boeing 787-9 type aircraft will fly to Antalya from Istanbul Airport with flight number TK2410 at 8:35 a.m., July 8. Passengers, seeing that the 787-9 type aircraft has joined the flight program, have taken great interest in the first scheduled flight, which will last one-and-a-half hours.
According to the flight schedule, the first international flight by Boeing 787-9 will be from Istanbul to Denpasar (Bali) on July 17, from Istanbul to Washington on Aug. 8, from Istanbul to Bogota-Panama City on Sept. 10 and from Istanbul to Atlanta from Sept. 11.
The first delivery date of THY Airbus 350 type aircrafts, which will join the fleet as of 2020, is next March. A350 type aircrafts will continue joining the fleet on various dates.
THY's new-generation long-range aircrafts, the Boeing 787-9 and the Airbus 350, will come with new designs. These wide-body aircrafts can carry between 280 and 320 passengers. The business class capacity of Dreamliners and A350 will be 30 passengers and 32 passengers, respectively. To boost passenger comfort, there are significant changes in the design of the business class. One of the most noticeable is that there is an exit from each seat to the corridor. In addition, new-generation cabin entertainment systems will make long journeys more comfortable.
