u/transgalanika

I am trying to decide between these 2 airlines on a trip from Europe to Osaka. Turkish is $300 USD more than China Eastern. I'm taking a trip in July with my kid, who will be 12 when we fly. We will spend a week in Scotland, then 9 days in Japan. We've traveled in Asia before, but never in Europe. The ME war has seriously messed up my travel plans by limiting my options (I originally planned to travel on Emirates).

China Eastern would have me leaving early in the morning (on British Airways) from Glasgow to London-Gatwick, where I'd board China Eastern with a second stopover in Shanghai before arriving in Osaka around noon the following day.

Turkish would have me leaving Edinburgh late afternoon, with 3 hours in Istanbul, then on to Osaka, arriving around 7 PM.

Can you help me with the pros and cons of each option? Is Turkish worth $300 more? One concern of mine is that the China Eastern option would have us flying over Russian airspace, so if there were a diversion, we could be on the ground in Russia. I cannot afford the higher prices of other European airlines. Thanks in advance.

I am trying to decide between these 2 airlines on a trip from Europe to Osaka. Turkish is $300 USD more than China Eastern. I'm taking a trip in July with my kid, who will be 12 when we fly. We will spend a week in Scotland, then 9 days in Japan. We've traveled in Asia before, but never in Europe. The ME war has seriously messed up my travel plans by limiting my options (I originally planned to travel on Emirates).

China Eastern would have me leaving early in the morning (on British Airways) from Glasgow to London-Gatwick, where I'd board China Eastern with a second stopover in Shanghai before arriving in Osaka around noon the following day.

Turkish would have me leaving Edinburgh late afternoon, with 3 hours in Istanbul, then on to Osaka, arriving around 7 PM.

Can you help me with the pros and cons of each option? Is Turkish worth $300 more? One concern of mine is that the China Eastern option would have us flying over Russian airspace, so if there were a diversion, we could be on the ground in Russia. I cannot afford the higher prices of other European airlines. Thanks in advance.