UNTIL now my view has always been that transatlantic travel should involve a business-class seat with me flat out and fast asleep for as much of the journey as possible so when I got the chance to try out Turkish Airlines’ new comfort class, I have to admit I was somewhat less than enthusiastic.
Thankfully, I couldn’t have been more wrong.
Designed to combine the convenience of business class with the value of economy, comfort class does exactly what it says on the tin.
The most important aspect of the new class, launched in August last year, is that the seats have been designed to allow maximum range with a seat pitch of 45.5 inches (116 cm) and an underseat leg rest.
There was ample room for my taller travelling companions to stretch out and comfort-class seats also challenge most of the business class seats I’ve flown in on width and depth of upholstery.
In fact, they’re the veritable ‘fat boy’ of airline seats and really, really comfortable – so much so that I did, in fact, spend most of my recent journey to Los Angeles, US, fast asleep tucked up in a fleecy blanket with a soft, fluffy pillow under my head.
I did, however, manage to rouse myself for the delicious in-flight meals served in the company of one of the airline’s Sky Chefs.
Again, the idea of haute cuisine in the air has always just seemed like a case of ne’er the twain shall meet, but on this occasion both meals and service really did the carrier proud from the tender steak medallions to crunchy veggies followed by desert and traditional Turkish coffee, served from bazaar-style coffee and tea pots, and an impressive choice of beverages both Turkish and international.
For those of a less dozy disposition, each seat has an individual in-arm screen allowing comfort-class passengers to watch a wide choice of films and documentaries as well as being able to access their own files through personal USB devices or iPods or play games to while away the hours.
And, on boarding, we were offered a wide choice of international reading material from glitzy magazines to the latest news publications.
So, all in all, while spending 12 hours on board an aircraft is probably never going to be my favourite pastime, Turkish Airlines’ comfort class certainly made the journey much more pleasant than I had expected and the carrier’s wide range of flight connections from the Middle East make America’s west coast a convenient and cost-effective option.
Comfort class is being introduced on trunk routes to Beijing, Shanghai, Narita, Bangkok, Sao Paulo and Toronto on the new Boeing 777 aircraft the airline is receiving and, depending on the delivery time of the new planes, comfort class will also be offered on flights to New York, Chicago and Washington DC.
By Liz O’Reilly