Flight Review: flying from Antalya on a SunExpress Boeing 737 MAX 8
Flight#: XQ140
From: Antalya (AYT)
To: Frankfurt (FRA)
Flight time: 3h
Aircraft: Boeing 737 MAX 8
This is not the first review I write a SunExpress flight review, you can find, for example, my report of a flight from Izmir to Vienna on a Boeing 737-800.
But I thought it was time to re-up this content my flight report with this addendum, if I may call it this way, because this time I manage to try out some new elements of the SunExpress experience.
First and foremost is the fact that this flight was on a Boeing 737 MAX 8, and while the experience is not so different from the previous one on the Boeing 737-800, as a state-of-the-art aircraft I think it deserves its own chapter and, also, because this time I got to try the extra spacious emergency row seat as well as some of the inflight extras, as well. So, let’s see how is it like!
Btw, the flight was courtesy of SunExpress, as I was returning from the airline’s 35th anniversary in Antalya.
The SunExpress product
So, for those of you that may not be familiar with SunExpress and its offerings. The airline is a 50-50% joint venture between Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa, although it operates pretty much autonomously. At its origin it focused almost entirely on carrying touroperator traffic between Germany and Turkey, but in recent years it has been diversifying away from this model, both in terms of product and geographical scope.
As of 2025, SunExpress is essentially a low-cost carrier operating an all-Boeing 737 fleet (a mix of B737-800s and MAX 8s) primarily between the Turkish Riviera and Western Europe. Its main bases are Antalya (AYT) and Izmir (ADB) and the product it offers onboard is the typical of the low-cost carriers, with single class, basic amenities and ancillaries “à la carte”.
When it comes to the pre-boarding experience, there is not much to comment on because it was pretty smooth. I did the check-in online and was carrying only carry-on luggage (which unlike on other low-cost airlines, is still included in the most basic fare!). I did get the digital boarding pass in an email, rather than in the e-wallet format, but it worked all the same.
The Cabin
Now, a nice surprise was that I had been assigned one of the emergency row seats, which means I would enjoy a truly spacious set-up during the 3h flight.
These are categorized as “XLeg seats” and you must pay extra to secure them.
Here below, for comparison, two other seats: the first row seat, which is also “XLeg” (although the problem with first rows if you have very long legs is that there is a hard barrier that often prevents you from fully stretching your legs!) and a standard seat.
The seats are Safran Z200 slim seats with leather upholstery. Interestingly the Boeing 737 MAX is fitted with light grey tones, whereas the flight to Antalya, which was on an older Boeing 737-800 had dark blue seats. I kind of preferred the light grey tones of this ones, since it gives it a more airy and clean look.
A couple more details of the SunExpress B737 MAX 8 cabin: the foldable tray (with the hard literature pocket just above) and one of the toilets.
Inflight meals on SunExpress
This time I had the chance to enjoy the food onboard. Please note that this is an extra, so you would either need to pay for it by booking one of the superior fare packages (which bundle a number of ancillary services together) or by ordering à-la-carte from the SunCafé menu.
If you have pre-ordered a hot meal, as it was my case, you don’t need to do anything else, the crew will have your name, seat number and order and will bring it to you before they start the regular service with the trolley.
Inflight meals at SunExpress are prepared by Do&Co, the same catering company that serves Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines, and the quality shows (in fact, I would go as far as stating that it is rare not to find god food on Turkey-based carriers).
Here you can get a bit of a close-up of the main meal, which was a sort of chicken kebab, together with rice and pine-nuts and roasted vegetables. There was also a vegetables salad, which was pretty nice, and a mousse for dessert.
Note that drinks are not included by default in the main meal order, so you may have to order separately. For less than €5 however you can get a bottle of mineral water and some excellent Turkish coffee, which I much recommend.
Ok, so we have seen what there is, now let’s see what there is not.
There’s no onboard entertainment (SunExpress had had offered Immfly’s wireless content solution in the past, but this was discontinued) or inflight magazine (although the SunCafé menu includes some information about the airline).
Also, no in-seat power or ports to charge electronic devices.
Both amenities, in my opinion, not that essential on short flights (most SunExpress flights are possibly in the 3h range, which is the duration of flight between Turkey and most destinations in Western Europe).
Last but not least, the MAX being a new generation aircraft it comes not only and large overhead bins and mood cabin lighting, but also with a very quiet cabin!
Our Take:
SunExpress offers a nice quality-price combination. It executes well on the tested-and-proven low-cost airline formula, but without the stridency of other operators in this segment. And if you are willing to pay for some extras, like the extra-spacious seat or the inflight meals, the experience can be pretty nice.