Turkish Airlines
reviews and complaints

Dear Sir / Madam,

I, Sakina Alakbarova, together with my parents and my three year old daughter, bought Turkish Airlines tickets in Baku (Baku - Istanbul, Istanbul - Salzburg) for 17.08.2018.
The Baku - Istanbul flight was delayed. At first, they were waiting for a missing passenger, then one of the passengers wasn't feeling well and required medical attention. Due to these reasons, we arrived in Istanbul at 14.50 instead of 14.20. As soon as the airplane landed we were rushing to our next flight. We approached a few different airport staff asking to help us to get to the gate quickly as we were late for our connecting flight but they all seemed uninterested in providing us with any sort of help. Finally, we got to our gate number 220, the boarding officer was still there but he refused to let us through telling us that the boarding was closed. At that point there was still had 20 minutes left till the take-off. You, Turkish Airlines were happy to delay our first flight waiting for a passenger. But even though you were informed (I think you are supposed to be informed about arrival of connecting flights and passenger details) that we were running slightly late because of that, you for some reason failed to prolong the boarding time for our flight and wait for us. Next, we had to walk around the airport, looking for help, with the three-year-old exhausted child sleeping in my arms, because we left it with our luggage in Baku. Finally, people at the information desk changed our flights, but didn't offer us a hotel stay. And only when I demanded to know who will be paying for compensation, I was offered to go to the TK hotel desk. Then, again, whilst holding a sleeping three-year-old in my arms for the next hour, we stood in a long passport control queue, after which to my big surprise we finally came across a nice and accommodating an airport employee, who told us that we will be able to get our luggage and a buggy within the next 3-4 hours. Considering by that point we were all completely exhausted and stressed out, plus had a child in our arms, I refused to wait in the airport any longer for our luggage and we stayed in a hotel without any luggage, without clothes for us as well as for a child.
Please be informed that we paid for the hotel in Salzburg 3700 euro for two days, however stayed just one day due to such approach from TK side. (Receipts and invoice are available upon request)

It was a dreadful experience for myself and my family and I do hope you will take responsibility for what could have been easily avoided if your staff showed a little bit more understanding and professionalism.

Thank you
Sakina
+[protected] or +[protected]

On 29th aug at around 12:30 am to 1 am i visited turkish airlines Customer hotel desk at istanbul ataturk airport. As i had layover of 21 hours i wanted to know the facilities like any hotel's (asked for free or paid rooms) availablity. The girls there as a representative of turkish airlines was so rude as she couldnt able to understand english nd couldnt able to convey the solutions of my query. Also the girl had no manners to talk with no curtacy. She was talking as if doing a big fever on me. She also had fight so many other flyers. I really want you to take this complain on serious note. Also kindly check the camera and take a strict action against such representatives as it downs the quality of turkish airlines. Being a regular flyer of turkish airlines i relly dont want to take any bad impression because of one person.

In anticipation of your reply

Hi there! My name is Nedzad Hajdarevic and I am complaining and e - mailing in order to get a refund for all our expenses caused by flight delay from Istanbul to Chicago on August 18th, 2018. The flight number is TK 5, (SQ 6205).
These are the names and the ticket numbers of my family:
Nedzad Hajdarevic #[protected]
Nermina Hajdarevic #[protected]
Anesa Imann Hajdarevic #[protected]
The flight was delayed for more than four hours and because of that delay we lost our connection flight that night from Chicago to Des Moines (Iowa). That night, Turkish Airline agent at the Chicago's desk put us in a hotel to spend the night and they gave us a piece of paper with some kind of reservation for the next morning flight with American Airlines at 7:20 AM. Flight number was AA2975, however American Airlines couldn't get a confirmation from Turkish Airlines about the tickets so unfortunately we missed that flight. I have contacted Turkish Airlines about three times that morning (August 19th) but each time they would hang up on me. Turkish Airlines ticketing at Chicago Airport reopens at 2:00 PM every day and we just didn't have the time to wait since we had been there since 5 AM. We eventually decided to continue our journey home with a rent a car service. We spent 6 hours traveling from Chicago Airport to Des Moines Airport, the cost for the Enterprise rental, gas and food came around to $400. I can provide all the receipts if needed down below. We hope that Turkish Airline will refund all our expenses and trouble we went through and prove to us that we should continue doing business with a great company like Turkish Airlines.
These are our contact information so you can either contact me or my wife If needed,
Nezdad Hajdarevic: Cell #[protected], e-mail: [protected]@gmail.com
Nermina Hajdarevic: Cell #[protected], e-mail: [protected]@gmail.com

Thank you,
Nedzad

Very bad experience with Turkish Airlines. After reading various posts related to lost luggage in Turkish airlines it is confirmed that I would never get my luggage back which we lost while coming from Delhi to Prague with Transfer flight at Istanbul flights being TK 1771 and TK 717 on 30th August 2018. We had filed complaint sent them emails but all in vain as why would these people bother.

I booked a flight from larnaca to malaga to end our holiday in Cyprus. The flight had a transfer via Athens where we had 1 hour 50 minutes wait to board. Unfortunately for some reason the plane landed in Athens 2 minutes before the next flight and they didn't wait for us. We were offered a new flight the next morning via Istanbul which we took no problems and we were put up in a 5 star hotel as we had a small child and a 7 month old baby. We then got on a flight and packed our very expensive baby buggy and car seat into a plastic bag where the Turkish airline assist and assured us we would have it at the airplane door on landing. This didn't happen nor was it even on the plane. We were told to go to baggage belt where we waited a long time and still no buggy. We were then told to go to Iberia desk where the lady scanned the sticker and told us the buggy was in Istanbul. She told us we would get it back the following day and I still have not got it or had a call about. I had to drive illegally holding my baby in the car as I have no seat and still don't know where my buggy is. I would really appreciate someone sorting this out for me.

I flew to San Francisco on August 9th from Mumbai International airport with a stopover in Istanbul. When i picked up my luggage on August 9 in San Francisco, I noticed that three of the wheels of my 28" bag got damaged and could not support themselves to stand on their own, it had been ripped. It alleviate the nuisance of having to pick the bag up off the floor and carry. Bags itself contains the luggage around 22kg and have another 8 bags to carry along with my 10 year old son. I have purchased the bag for this trip 2 months before i flew. The flight got delayed by almost an hour and it's more than 24 hours of journey. So, I got so tired with Jet lags, layover and after looking back the bag condition I didn't have enough strength to carryover to the airport and report the baggage irregularity same day prior to leaving the airport. For your reference, see the attached picture of bag damages as well as tags attached to the bag and the baggage irregularity evaluation report received from Turkish Airlines.

So on 10th August, i went onto the Turkish Airlines website to file a damaged baggage claim on very next day of my arrival. I have provided all the details along with picture of damaged bag and tags.Surprise to me, the claim didn't gone through. The evaluation report says "Unfortunately, it is not possible to assess any compensation for you. Visible damages should be reported on same day by staff or passenger prior to leaving the airport". I was well within the 7 days required by the airlines to file a claim. Well... I had tried over and over to explain the situation by replying to their evaluation report but in vain.

Here are Connecting Flight Details:-
Turkish Airlines TK 721
Departure 09 August 06:25 AM Mumbai, (Chhatrapati Shivaji) (+)
Arrival 09 August 10:40 AM Istanbul, (Ataturk) (+)
Duration 06:45 (Non stop)

Turkish Airlines TK 079
Departure 09 August 01:05 PM Istanbul, (Ataturk) (+)
Arrival 09 August 04:35 PM San Francisco, (San Francisco Intl) (+)
Duration 13:30 (Non stop)

I checked Turkish Airelines website as DOT travel guideline on Baggage- related claims:

If your complaint is about damage or delay of baggage, you must notify the airline about your claim immediately, and at the latest, for internation travel, within:

7 days from receipt of your damaged bag
and 21 days from delivery of delayed baggage

There is no context written over for visible vs non-visible damages. I totally got frustrated with the services got from airlines on this issue.

Please look into this matter at earliest to request for refund of compensation against my personal damages.

Hi!
I was informed when I booked my ticket 2 months ago that as long as I put that I will have a baby with me, I will have a bassinet for him without having to reserve it.
I called today just to reserve a seat for me, they said they have to request a bassinet, and my request was not approved. My flight will be 12 hours, my baby can't sleep on my lap for 12 hours he's gonna be crying all night. I asked to talk to a manager or someone I can complain for, they told me they can't transfer me and I have to make a complain online. I would like someone to call me.

On my flight me and my son Istanbul to Houston USA your menu offers great choices but unfortunately we didn't get any since you run out of meals chef offered instead eggplant choices of Prawn lamp chops Turkish desert all not available on our Business flight. I find that isn't acceptable by any means when we purchased 2 tickets for over 5300€ !
Flight number TK 33
My TK member [protected]

I flew from Istanbul to Johannesburg on Friday 17 August 2018. I had a miserable flight as the entertainment set on my seat (31E) was not working properly. It kept freezing and l could not watch anything or listen to music. It was really terrible. Please ask your technical people to sit on E31 of that flight and see if they will enjoy the entertainment without it freezing.

Really disappointing and hated my trip.

Dear Turkish Airlines,

My name is Alaaeldin Elraggal. I live in Manchester UK. I am writing to you today to complain of delayed flight i had with you on 20th September 2016 (TK0697) from Borg Al Arab airport to Istanbul Reservation code (RGTI7K). Because of the delay, i was unable to catch my connecting flight from Istanbul to Manchester on 20th September 2016 (7:25 am TK 1993). I had to stay at the airport to take the next flight to Manchester at 1:30 pm. It was so hard and frustrating to stuck in the airport for more than 6 hours without proper previous sleep.

Reservation code: T5VMNZ
Another two flights that were totally cancelled on 10th January 2017 TK1996 from Manchester to Istanbul and on 11th January 2017 TK 0696 from Istanbul to Borg Al Arab airport. When i arrived to the airport, they informed me that the flughts were cancelled and i would have to wait to reschedule my flight with another airline. Apart from staying more than 10 hours to reschedule in the airport, i was given a flight on 11th January 10:00 am in morning in Saudi Airlines from Manchester to Jeddah and i had to wait in the airport again to the next day to finally arrive to my final station on 12th January 2017. The total time i had wasted was more than 24 hours!

Reservation code TMAG4B:
I arrived to Manchester yesterday coming from Borg Al Arab through Istanbul to Manchester(TK697 and TK 1993) . However, i never found my baggage. They advised in the airport that my baggage would arrive with the next plane coming to Manchester at 3:30 pm same day. I had to come back again to collect it although i had lots of engagements that i needed to cancel to come back for my baggage.

Finally, i still believe that you are exceptional airline company in dealing with your loyal customers when they face problems. I was hoping that you compensate my journeys with you.

Kind regards,
Alaa

I had bad experience during my flight from Hamburg to Istanbul on August 4th. 2018 flight 1662 seat 26 k.
I asked about complaint form they gave me feedback form, I filled it. Then I received SMS and emails telling me that my feedback had been received and later had been resolved.
So what doesn't mean and what the feedback about my complaint.
My reference is: TK-1351388 #S1-1305016#
Would you please feed me back.
Email: [protected]@hotmail.com
Regards
Reem

I flew from Istanbul to Houston on Turkish Airlines business class on 07/31/18.
At the Houston airport when I picked up my Carry-on I noticed the handle is completely broken. I brought the issue to the attention of Turkish airlines attendant at the airport and I was told I have to file the claim on line. I filed the claim on-line and in atimely manner (within one week of incident). I sent all the documentaions that they needed and they approved all of them.
The decision that they made was that I had to file the claim at the airport not after I got home. I trusted their REP. at the airport and according to their policy; passengers have one week to file a claim and now they have denied my claim.
attached is the documents and conversations with Turkish airlines

I was on the flight Turkish Airlines TK 045, Cape Town - Istambul.
Departure on 28 July at 17:20, Arrival 29th July 05:05.

My Connecting flight was at Turkish Airlines TK1775, Istambul - Riga.
Departure 29th July 14:50, Arrival 29th July 17:50.

I was flying with both of my kids 3 and 4 years of age. I must say that the both flights were very good and the stuff on the plane were absolutely brilliant.

The staff In the Airport transfer desk were very good. I was looking to see if i could get the Airport Hotel with two of my little kids. Gentleman was very helpful and informed me that the hotel is fully booked (5am) and there should be some vacancies in 2/3 hours. besides the fact that my next flight was in 9hours 45 min instead of 10 hours, as its not easy contain 2 small kids.
3 hours later at the Care Point i was rudely helped by the other gentleman, I stood there for 15 min while i had no idea what is happening. The stuff was laughing about something, and i literally felt absolutely ignored. He said there is no chance that i'll get the room and gave me the meal voucher. There was not any customer care skills involved at all.
I could not go to the Quiet room 219 for 9 hours 45 min cause i have two kids and they wouldn't have sat for that time quietly.

I ended up going to the lounge, where kids could play.

When i arrived at Riga i was beyond exhausted. It is a long flight which i know, 10hrs 45 min from Cape Town, but i was not expecting to spend almost 10hrs walking around the Airport with two small kids.
Customer care should be consistent.
It was raining most of the day in Istambul.
Besides that, arriving at my family house all of my suitcases were wet. All my clothing shoes everything was wet, it was drenched ... without exaggeration.

They were badly kept or they've been left in the rain for 10 hrs.
The bottom of my smallest suitcase is broken also.

I didn't report anything to the airport at my arrival as i was exhausted and i didn't notice anything till i got home.

My email address is kristine.[protected]@gmail.com

I flew business class on Turkish airlines and on my way back from Canada to Beirut first they charge me 222 $ for carry on weight approximately 23 kg, I was asking for exemption and no one talk to me or help me at all, also on my flight from turkey to Beirut I was asking for wheelchair, and that is never done, so my experience for Turkish airlines was very bad, also I felt they were robing me for paying so much money for service I did not get . I am really very disappointed and I will not fly on your airlines anymore .

Hello sir
Its, requested that i have travelled for the first time through turkish airline and it is a very bad experience of my life and ill not travel and prefer to travel in turkish airline in future, because I reached 20:00 exact to the boarding gate and time for flight was 20:25 and there was no crew to entertain me and my family and i have paid 210$ panelty per person for the mistake of airline, i am a gold card member as i have provided my rop number it is requested to refund my panelty
ABUZARHAIDER
AQ6976713
ROP : TG/G nr36181

Dear Concern..

I introduce my self as Manish Bhatia, an Indian Citizen, who had gone to the US on 12th July and returned on 23rd July, 2018.

However, at the [censored] end I am facing a rather unpleasant situation, which I am constrained to bring to your kind knowledge for a very urgent redressal.

The booked baggage which was scheduled to arrive subsequently to my arrival in India on 23rd July, 2018, ( TK 716 ) has unfortunately NOT reached INDIA, till the time of writing this mail, which is shocking !

This is indeed a worry some incident for me, which has reluctantly caused a substantial Financial Loss, besides a lot of continuing mental pain and trauma.

I have also simultaneously registered my Baggage Loss Complaint /Claim on the Turkish Airlines Team Member on Airport providing the requisite particulars of itinerary flight details, Tag Number etc, where after I am being provided with an invariable message " that the process to find your baggage is still underway . Please check back later"

My reference number is Deltk26264
My Flight Number : Flight 1 : TK 32 Flight
Tag Number TK585944

As a matter of fact pursuant to my today morning talks with the executives of the Airlines, I was asked to patiently wait till 5.00 pm today, but unfortunately just prior to writing this mail I am getting the same stereotyped reply that you are looking into the matter"

Now, that since the matter is getting inordinately delayed and my mental pain agony, peace and suffering getting beyond patience, besides the substantial financial loss, due to the seemingly casual and careless of the Airlines, I strongly urge you to REVERT me with the exact situation of the case, by tomorrow afternoon, else I shall be left with no alternative to escalate the matter to the higher ups of the Airlines, necessary statutory / legal authorities such as the Police/ Consulate and also propagate this highly irresponsible behavior of the AIRLINES on the Social Media.

Trust that your AIRLINES will push up its entire machinery to LOOK INTO the SERIOUS LAPSE shall RESPOND to me in writing .

( MANISH BHATIA )

Contact : [protected]

To whom it may concern at Turkish Airline,
My Name is Abdulla Tabbaa
I have booked two round-trip tickets for my daughter's and they're 18 years old cousin booked on her own, and they are traveling together The names are;
Dalia Hadda Tabbaa 21years old and Alia Taja Tabbaa 21 years old
Reservation code; UQNZGZ
and their cousin
Rima Siham Ghamrawi age 18
Confirmation; RFKX5Y
Traveling from Los Angeles airport to Beirut Lebanon through Istanbul July 22 to August 22,
The plane leaving LAX on July 22 was delayed One hour from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM, when they arrived to Istanbul as they're walking out they asked The personnel at the gate where to go and thy guided them to the wrong gate and they missed their flight they stayed 15 hours at the airport panicking and crying and confused they had a panic attack nobody speaks English to help them! we had to purchase tickets on MEA air to Beirut after 15 hours waiting for you guys to respond seven phone calls talking to the escalation department nobody gives a damn
I would like to have someone high up who make decisions to look at my situation and how frustrated we are with Turkish airline and compensate us good or we will never use Turkish airline again and will put some bad reviews and publish the story on all media
I have everything in detail what happened with the panic attacks
Thank you
Abdulla Tabbaa
[protected]
[protected]@yahoo.com

My name is Aminata Gassama flight number and date TK 34/24Jun/TK539/24Jun. I flew from Houston, Texas to Bamako, ans received my suitcases a week later. During this time, ll my diabetic medications went bad?. This is causing me a great financial burden, and I would like you to make me the below refund expeditiously:
5 Victoza which amounts to 2583 SAR = US 690
4 Lantos Solostarm which amounts to 1126 SAR= US 301
3 Appedra Solostar which amounts to 481 SAR= US 128
Total=US 1119

We had a flight from TLV 27/02/18 TK 787 to Sofia with "Turkish Airline" with connection flight in Istanbul TK 1029.

Instead of 2 hours connection we had to stay in Istanbul till 14:45 next day . We had 5 days' vacation and have lost ski day and one night hotel reservation.

Attached original tickets, declaration form from Turkish airline filled in Istanbul airport and new tickets . Please let me know if more info is needed.

June, 29th, 2018

To: Turkish Airlines

From: Nicoleta Achim
[protected]@gmail.com
[protected]
"Authenticity is not something we find, it is in us all the time."

Subject: Complaint
TK-749535, Nov. 24, 2017
TK-749535 #S1-726258#, Nov. 27, 2017
TK-766032##, Dec. 1, 2017
TK-766032 #S1-755862#

Dear Sir. Bilal Ekşi -

From the bottom of my heart I am sending to you this letter reflecting long time unresolved issue. I am asking, for your awareness in reevaluating this case that Turkish airline representative couldn't resolve it.

Further to my email of Nov. 24, 2017, I have yet to have any satisfactory answers.

On November 24, 2017 I was returning to my home in Los Angeles from Bucharest, Romania with a stop in Istanbul, Turkey to change planes and continue my journey home. The flight was delayed and arrived 16 minutes late, thus missing the connecting flight from Istanbul to Los Angeles requiring an overnight stop. At the time I purchased my ticket, I requested a wheelchair because I had recently had surgery on my right foot and was unable to walk unassisted.

When our flight was late on 24th of February 2017, while I was travelling with my fiancé, Bogdan Velciu we were issued a visa to travel into the city and we were taken to a good hotel where we had a good room, and good food.

This time, I was travelling alone and I was refused a visa, and no wheelchair was provided, nor did anyone offer to find me one. Instead, I was taken to a room where there were military-style beds placed closely together. There were fifty people from all over the world, all ages - men, women and children. It was impossible to sleep in this situation because of the noise of all the people coming and going, snoring, crying children, etc. and I didn't feel secure with all the movement in that room. Also, the mixture of different colognes and perfumes, perspiration, plus the odors of people travelling and no facilities for showering or bathing, made it impossible for me to breathe because I suffer from various allergies. Then there was the problem of the restrooms being a five minute walk from the sleeping facility - clearly I was challenged by this because I didn't have a wheelchair and couldn't walk easily.

We were given meal vouchers - also not close to the sleeping facilities, so again, I was forced to walk - with much difficulty with no wheelchair, to get to the food court. Once there, the food was inedible, and I was forced find other meal options on my own.

All in all, a very unsatisfactory experience and Turkish Airlines did not live up to their promise of a pleasant travel experience and definitely not much friendly assistance from the airline representatives in that airport!

A few months earlier when I was travelling with my fiancé, and we missed our connection because our flight was late, the assistance we received was very different than my experience in November. I feel that I was discriminated against because I was a woman travelling alone and I wish to be compensated for the inconvenience I suffered.
Please pay attention to your loyal customers and to this case because this happen to me but tomorrow it may happen to your family, and I perceive that you are not going to like it.
I will send this letter to your CEO, your sponsors, and media.. This is not a good business vibration for your reputation. I look forward to your reply.
I would like to have closure on this issue.

Best regards,
Nicoleta Achim

Here is your respons to the incident on 24th of February 2017

On Thursday, August 24, 2017 8:50 AM, "[protected]@thy.com" wrote:

Dear Velciu BOGDAN,
We have received your message dated 4th of August 2017.
Firstly, we ask for you to accept our regret at the unpleasant situation you have experienced, and we apologize for not getting you to the final destination on your ticket on time.
In the case that one of our flights is delayed, we facilitate free-of-charge the transport of our passengers who have not been able to make it to the connecting flight listed on the same ticket to the final destination listed on their ticket.
In our investigation, it has been determined that on 24th of February 2017, your TK1044 Bucharest / Istanbul flight was operated with a 9-minute delay due to 6 minutes of late arrival of aircraft from previous sector and 3 minutes of air traffic control capacity, which misconnected you from your transfer flight TK0009 Istanbul / Los Angeles operated on the same day. Accordingly, your reservation was changed to facilitate your journey via the same flight a day later on 25th of February 2017.
As a compensation, an EMD with the number [protected] and the amount of 600 Euros has been issued on 23th of August, 2017.
In relation with this; the conditions of the EMD is as follows:
- The amount on the EMD can be refunded within 1 year from the issue date, through the nearest Turkish Airlines sales office. In the course of exchange procedure while refunding, differences might occur due to exchange rate disparity.
- According to your prefer, you may use the EMD in Turkish Airlines' flights within one year from the issue date.
- This EMD is valid only on Turkish Airlines' flights. It is non- transferable to another person and any name change is not permitted.
- The validity of the EMD is one year from the date of issue.
You may also visit the following link at Turkish Airlines website in order to find the nearest Sales Office:
http://www.turkishairlines.com/en-int/corporate/sales-office
As we facilitate our guests' travels, we also wish to welcome you as hosts with great quality of service and professional staff. With hopes that we can offer you flawless service on your subsequent travels, we are respectfully yours.
Yours Sincerely,
Ulas Can C.
Turkish Airlines Inc.
Customer Contact Center

Dear Nicoleta ACHIM,
First of all, we would like to kindly inform you that, the inconvenience you have already experienced deeply saddens us, too.
As is the case in every other industry, unexpected issues may occur in the aviation industry, too, and we would like to share with you the fact that some of these happen outside our control.
In our investigation, we have determined that TK1044 Bucharest to Istanbul on 24th of February 2017 was conducted with 6 minutes late arrival of aircraft from another flight or previous sector and 3 minutes ATC restrictions delay. In regard to this, we tried to reschedule your ticket with the next alternative flight as the procedure indicates and that you facilitate your journey.

Below you can check the details of the EMD, have been issued by Turkish Airlines Customer Care;
EMD Number :[protected]
Amount : 29 Euros for visa fee
EMD has been issued on 26th of July 2017.
EMD Number :[protected]
Amount : 2477.28 Turkish Liras
EMD has been issued on 28th of July 2017.
In relation with this; the conditions of the EMD is as follows:

- The amount on the EMD can be refunded within 1 year from the issue date, through the nearest Turkish Airlines sales
office. In the course of exchange procedure while refunding, differences might occur due to exchange rate disparity.

You may also visit the following link at Turkish Airlines website in order to find the nearest Sales Office:
http://www.turkishairlines.com/en-int/corporate/sales-office

- According to your prefer, you may use the EMD in Turkish Airlines' flights within one year from the issue date.
- This EMD is valid only on Turkish Airlines' flights. It is non- transferable to another person and any name change is not
permitted.

We apologize once again for the inconvenience, and with hopes that we can offer you flawless service on your subsequent travels, we are respectfully yours.
Best Regards,
Özlem Y.
Turkish Aİrlines Inc
Customer Contact Center