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More than 150,000 meals on 800 daily flights; catering to more than 60 airlines in about 60 international cuisines; 3,000 food service staff working in three shifts round-the-clock - Turkish DO&CO, Turkish Airlines’ catering joint venture, never halts work to maintain top quality and |
Every dish is prepared by hand using fresh halal-certified ingredients.
Since the introduction of the new catering concept in 2007 by the carrier’s 50:50 JV with Vienna-based DO&CO, the overall passenger satisfaction level has risen from 49% to 98%, according to Turkish Airlines surveys. Since then, Turkish DO&CO has been operating nine gourmet kitchens all over Turkey - Istanbul (Ataturk and Sabiha Gokeen airports), Ankara, Antalya, Izmir, Bodrum, Trabzon, Dalaman and Adana.
The JV served a total of 51mn meals on 232,000 flights from nine points in Turkey in 2012. In the 2012 summer schedule, the maximum number of meals served on a single day was 139,000 on 400 aircraft, according to Turkish Airlines estimates. Having grown rapidly along with Turkish Airlines, the JV now controls around a 70% share of the in-flight catering market in Turkey, the
airline said.
Turkish DO&CO’s clients include the Big Three Gulf carriers: Qatar Airways, Emirates and Etihad Airways, among other top global airlines.
The concept of “flying chefs” on all long-haul and some short haul Turkish Airlines flights was introduced in 2010 to improve quality and service standards. By end-2011, the carrier had 200 of them; the number currently stands at 500, according to a Turkish DO&CO
official.
Located within just a five-minute drive from Ataturk airport, the Turkish DO&CO kitchen works day and night to hand-prepare an estimated 150,000 meals for 800 daily flights. Every finished meal is given a tag with flight number as well as date and time of packaging to ensure seamless flow to the right flights. No pork or alcohol content is used in food preparation.
Known as the “the gourmet entertainment group,” Turkish DO&CO was awarded for the best business class onboard catering in 2013 by Skytrax. The service was selected the world’s second-best in 2012; second best globally for all-class service in 2011, and the best in the world for economy-class flights in 2010.
Turkish DO&CO, which employs 6,000 staff globally, bases its catering concept for Turkish Airlines on Turkish hospitality with the menus featuring select choices from traditional cuisine. For other flag carriers and global clients, tempting culinary offerings from around the world are prepared.
The catering JV also provides service to the Lufthansa First Class Lounge in Frankfurt and the Emirates Lounge at John F Kennedy Airport in New York. It employs a total of 90 staff to provide round-the-clock service to passengers at the signature 3,000sq m VIP Lounge Istanbul of Turkish Airlines at Ataturk International Airport.