en.Wedoany.com Reported - Turkish Airlines operates a fleet of 25 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, including 20 151-seat 737 MAX 8s and 5 169-seat 737 MAX 9s, accounting for just 6% of the Star Alliance member's total fleet of 409 aircraft.

According to OAG flight schedule data, between July and December 2026, Turkish Airlines' MAX aircraft will be deployed to 83 countries, with Istanbul Airport (IST) as the hub. Tanzania is the top destination country for MAX flights during this period. The 151-seat MAX 8, with its range advantage, serves as the primary aircraft for the airline's flights to Africa, with the longest operational route having a block time of 11 hours and 20 minutes.

The following lists the 10 longest MAX routes operated by Turkish Airlines between July and December 2026 (including connecting flights), all flown by the MAX 8:

Block time 11 hours 20 minutes: Lusaka (LUN) via Dar es Salaam (DAR) to Istanbul (IST), scheduled to resume in October, three times weekly.

Block time 10 hours 30 minutes: Istanbul (IST) via Ouagadougou to Conakry, three to four times weekly.

Block time 10 hours 15 minutes: Istanbul (IST) via Ouagadougou to Freetown, scheduled to resume in October, three times weekly.

Block time 10 hours 15 minutes: Istanbul (IST) via Libreville to Pointe-Noire, scheduled to resume in November, twice weekly.

Block time 10 hours 0 minutes: Istanbul (IST) via Nouakchott to Banjul, two to three times weekly.

Block time 9 hours 55 minutes: Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO) via Zanzibar (ZNZ) to Istanbul (IST), 17 to 18 times weekly.

Block time 9 hours 40 minutes: Istanbul (IST) via Cotonou to Abidjan, four to five times weekly.

Block time 9 hours 35 minutes: Istanbul (IST) via N'Djamena to Niamey, one to two times weekly.

Block time 9 hours 30 minutes: Istanbul (IST) via Niamey to Bamako, scheduled to resume in October, twice weekly.

Block time 9 hours 25 minutes: Istanbul (IST) via Yaoundé to Douala, two to three times weekly.

The longest MAX route is the flight from Lusaka Kenneth Kaunda International Airport (LUN) via Dar es Salaam Airport (DAR) to Istanbul (IST), with a block time of 11 hours and 20 minutes. This route is scheduled to resume on October 25, operating three times weekly. The return flight departs the Zambian capital at 1:50 AM local time, arrives in the Tanzanian capital at 5:15 AM, then TK526 departs at 6:15 AM and returns to IST at 2:10 PM local time. According to booking data for the 12 months ending April 2026, Germany is the largest source market for LUN, and London is the largest city market.

The Kilimanjaro route (JRO) in Tanzania has been operated by Turkish Airlines since 2012, initially using the Boeing 737-900ER. Between July and December 2026, considering all equipment and route arrangements, there will be two to three daily flights to JRO, some operating IST-JRO-ZNZ-IST and others IST-ZNZ-JRO-IST. The maximum block time of 9 hours and 55 minutes occurs during the Northern Hemisphere winter. Booking data shows that the local IST-JRO market has very few passengers (fewer than 5,000 round-trip), with almost all passengers connecting in IST to cities such as Paris, Barcelona, Frankfurt, and London.

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