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Turkish Airlines picks Airbus over Boeing for widebody freighter order

Order is part of strategic plan for cargo growth

Eric Kulisch
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Turkish Airlines currently operates 10 Airbus A330-200 medium-widebody freighters. The A350 is a big step up in size. (Photo: Shutterstock/Renatas Repcinskas)

Turkish Airlines has signed a purchase agreement for five all-new Airbus A350 widebody freighters, the companies announced on Friday, closing the order gap with Boeing in the next-generation, large freighter segment.

The news comes a week after Cathay Pacific ordered six A350 cargo jets. 

Airbus has received 50 orders for the A350 freighter from nine customers following its launch at the Dubai Airshow two years ago. Boeing has 55 orders from five customers for the next-generation 777-8 freighter, 34 of which are from Qatar Airways. Boeing hasn’t received an order for the large cargo jet since October 2022.

Cargo airlines have been much slower this year to invest in new aircraft because of the severe downturn that has gripped the air cargo industry for the better part of two years.


The A350s were part of an order for 220 Airbus aircraft, including 150 A321 and 65 A350 passenger jets. Turkish Airlines operates a large mixed fleet of Airbus and Boeing aircraft, but the A350 is a new aircraft type for the carrier.

Turkish Airlines is a combination carrier that moves cargo with passenger aircraft and dedicated freighters. It is the seventh-largest cargo airline by traffic carried, according to figures from the International Air Transport Association. The freighter fleet consists of eight Boeing 777-200s, 10 A330-200s and six leased aircraft, including two Boeing 747-400s.

Turkish officials have openly talked this year about plans for major cargo expansion. In 2021, the company opened a mega-cargo terminal at Istanbul Airport. 

Airbus did not give a delivery timeline for Turkish Airlines’ A350 freighters. It has previously said the aircraft, which is currently under development, will reach the first customer in 2026. Boeing is targeting 2027 for first delivery of the 777-8.


The A350F features the largest main deck cargo door. More than 70% of the airframe is made of advanced materials. Airbus claims the lighter airframe and efficient Rolls Royce engines produce a 20% advantage in fuel burn and CO2 emissions over the legacy Boeing 777. 

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Contact Reporter: ekulisch@freightwaves.com 

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Eric Kulisch

Eric is the Supply Chain and Air Cargo Editor at FreightWaves. An award-winning business journalist with extensive experience covering the logistics sector, Eric spent nearly two years as the Washington, D.C., correspondent for Automotive News, where he focused on regulatory and policy issues surrounding autonomous vehicles, mobility, fuel economy and safety. He has won two regional Gold Medals and a Silver Medal from the American Society of Business Publication Editors for government and trade coverage, and news analysis. He was voted best for feature writing and commentary in the Trade/Newsletter category by the D.C. Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. He was runner up for News Journalist and Supply Chain Journalist of the Year in the Seahorse Freight Association's 2024 journalism award competition. In December 2022, Eric was voted runner up for Air Cargo Journalist. He won the group's Environmental Journalist of the Year award in 2014 and was the 2013 Supply Chain Journalist of the Year. As associate editor at American Shipper Magazine for more than a decade, he wrote about trade, freight transportation and supply chains. He has appeared on Marketplace, ABC News and National Public Radio to talk about logistics issues in the news. Eric is based in Vancouver, Washington. He can be reached for comments and tips at ekulisch@freightwaves.com