Turkish Airlines orders up to 150 Boeing 737 MAX jets for its Istanbul short-haul network

Turkish Airlines has signed for up to 150 Boeing 737 MAX jets, its largest single-aisle order from Boeing. The deal covers 100 firm 737-8s and options for 50 more. It was signed in New York on September 23 with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the room, according to Boeing's announcement.

For travelers, the short version is this: the jets are for the short- and medium-haul network that fans out from Istanbul Airport. They are not long-haul planes, and they will not bring lie-flat seats. But they will carry a large share of the people who connect through Istanbul over the next decade, on a newer airplane than many of those routes use today.

What was ordered

The order closes talks that began in 2025. Boeing says it includes substitution rights for the 737-10, the largest MAX. That gives Turkish Airlines the option to swap some 737-8s for a bigger plane if a route needs more seats.

Boeing did not give a delivery schedule in its release. Turkish Airlines has, in a statement reported by Euronews: deliveries are planned between 2033 and 2037. So this is a long-range plan, not a change you will see at the gate next summer.

The purchase follows Turkish's 2025 order for up to 75 787 Dreamliners. Turkish Airlines, including its subsidiary AJet, already flies more than 200 Boeing jets: 737 MAX, 737 Next-Generation, 787, 777 and 777 Freighter.

Prof. Murat Şeker, the airline's chairman, said the new jets "will bring greater efficiency and flexibility to our operations, supporting the extensive network we serve from our hub in Istanbul."

What it means for the Istanbul network

Boeing describes the 737-8's job as serving "high-demand domestic and international routes." It did not name any. Turkish Airlines has not published a route plan for the new jets either.

Still, the shape of the network tells you where they will go. Turkish counts 358 destinations in 133 countries, and most of them sit within a few hours of Istanbul: Turkish domestic cities, Europe, the Caucasus, the Middle East, Central Asia and North Africa. Those are single-aisle routes today, flown by a mix of Airbus A320-family jets, 737-800s and 737-900ERs, and the MAX jets Turkish already has.

A fleet of 100 or more 737-8s lets the airline do two things. First, it can retire older 737 Next-Generation jets. Boeing says the MAX family burns 20% less fuel than the planes it replaces. Second, it can add frequencies and new cities. Turkish's fleet page lists the 737 MAX 8's range at 6,480 kilometers (about 4,000 miles), which from Istanbul reaches well past Western Europe, the Gulf and Central Asia.

For a connecting passenger, that means more of the two- to five-hour legs on either side of a long-haul flight will be on a MAX. The long-haul leg itself is another story, and the 787 order covers that.

Cabins on the MAX

The release says nothing about cabins, and Turkish Airlines has not said how the new jets will be laid out. The best guide is the 737 MAX 8s the airline already flies.

Turkish has not said how it will configure the new jets. Its current 737 MAX 8s carry a small business cabin up front and economy behind, and seat-map sites list them at 151 seats, with 16 in business. Turkish's own fleet page describes USB charging at the seats and overhead bins designed for more storage.

So this is a standard short-haul business class: a wider recliner, not a flat bed. Whether the 2033 jets get a new seat or a new layout is something the airline has not addressed. If it changes, it will be years before anyone sits in it.

Where to wait in Istanbul

Most people flying these jets will pass through Istanbul Airport, and that is where Turkish's lounge offer is strongest.

The flagship is the Turkish Airlines Lounge Business in the international terminal, up the escalators opposite gate E1. It is open 24 hours, holds about 765 people and has 20 showers. It carries a 4.9 rating in the Lounge Frog directory, with top marks for food, quiet, seating and showers.

Across the terminal, the Turkish Airlines Lounge Miles&Smiles sits above gate C1. It is also open around the clock, with 10 showers and a 4.6 rating.

For domestic flights, which will be a big part of the 737-8's work, there is the Turkish Airlines Domestic Business Lounge opposite gates G6 and G7. It is rated 4.6, with four showers.

Access is the same at all three. Business class passengers get in but cannot bring a guest. Miles&Smiles Elite and Elite Plus members and other Star Alliance Gold cardholders get in with one guest when both are flying Star Alliance that day. See the Turkish Airlines Lounge and Star Alliance Gold program pages for details, and the Miles&Smiles page for how the tiers work.

Outside Turkey, Turkish runs its own lounges at Washington Dulles, New York JFK and Miami, among others. Those serve the long-haul flights that feed into Istanbul, where the MAX takes over.

What we do not know yet

Turkish has not said which routes the first jets will fly, how the cabins will be configured, or which older jets will leave the fleet first. The 2033 start date leaves plenty of time for those answers.