A brand new Turkish Airlines A321neo takes off. Photo by Airbus.
Turkish Airlines became the latest proud owner of Airbus’ single-aisle A321neo aircraft. The fourth-largest airline by destinations served has some pretty unique and exciting plans for their Stretch ‘Buses.
Turkish has a whopping 95 A321neo aircraft on order, powered by the Pratt & Witney engine option. The first Turkish A321neo was delivered just weeks ago, sporting a brand new type of business class seat from Rockwell Collins.
Turkish Airlines A321neo business class seats. Image by @AirportIST.
Rather than offering the standard European business class 3 x 3 seating with a blocked middle seat, Turkish opted instead for the Rockwell Collins MiQ business class seats, per aviation design blog, TheDesignAir. The seats are also used on some carrier’s international premium economy cabins.
Turkish Airlines delights with design details
Business class recliner chairs tend to be exceedingly bland these days, but the new Turkish seats show a thoughtful attention to design detail. The airline’s logo is tastefully imprinted on the leather headrests, which are offset with an orange trim.
It also appears that the seats come installed with features more commonly reserved for long-haul premium economy cabins, including adjustable leg rests and a small privacy divider.
Turkish Airlines A321neo business class seats – note the dividers. Image by@AirportIST.
The Turkish jets take advantage of Airbus’ new Airbus Cabin Flex (ACF) technology. The flexible cabin design can seat up to 240 passengers, but Turkish configured its A321s with just 182 seats – 20 in business and 162 in economy. This will likely be a spacious ride.
The new 240-seat Airbus A321neo ACF
The first Airbus A321neo ‘ACF’ (Airbus Cabin Flex) rolled out back in January at Airbus facilities in Hamburg, Germany. By shifting the exit doors and modifying the cabin, the plane can accommodate as many as 240 passengers! The now-optional ACF configuration will become standard by 2020, according to Airbus.
First A321neo ‘ACF’ (Airbus Cabin Flex) rollout in January 2018. Photo by Airbus.
#AvGeeks Spotting Guide: Airbus A321ceo, or A321neo with ACF?
Where’s Waldo? Or Where are the ‘normal’ exit doors, rather? To most AvGeeks, the new Turkish A321neo probably looks like a very long A320 – two sets of doors front and back, and four overwing exit doors.
Turkish A321neo – with the new exit door configuration. Photo by Turkish.
The new ACF-configured A321 removes doors 2L/2R (just forward of the wings) and adds four overwing exit doors – like the standard A320 configuration. Doors 3L/3R – aft of the wing – are also shifted back slightly. The guide below shows the visual differences between exit door configurations.
Exit door configuration differences between A321ceo and neo ‘ACF’. Image by Point Me to the Plane.
Airbus A321neo ACF evacuation slides. Image: Airbus
Turkish Airlines Airbus A321 NEO TC-LSA pic.twitter.com/UbL7enHHhs
— AirportIST (@AirportIST) July 13, 2018
H/T: TheDesignAir
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2 comments
Can’t say until I fly it but based on looks I’d argue those business class seats are a downgrade from their current offering on their narrow body jets.
Thanks for reading, Albert. Is it the slimline look/design of the seat that’s offputting? Send us pics if and when you get a chance to fly the new jet!
– S