ANA take delivery of their first Airbus A380

One of the last new customers for the Airbus A380 took delivery of their first aircraft today – with All Nippon Airways (ANA) taking the first of three aircraft.

The Flying Honu in the air – Image, Airbus

ANA is due to take delivery of three Airbus A380 aircraft – all painted in variants of “The Flying Honu”  (Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle) livery – in celebration of the primary route these frames will serve.

The first one is painted blue, the second one will be green, and the third – orange.

That is, of course, Japan to Hawaii – a route that is fought over by ANA and Japan Airlines heavily – with the fleet dedicated to the Tokyo Narita – Honolulu route.

ANA will be the 15th operator of the type – and probably the last new from the factory customer

The planes will offer a full four-class operation (First Class, Business Class, Premium Economy and Economy Class), split between:

• 8 Suites, First Class – Upper Deck
• 56 Business Class seats – Upper Deck
• 73 Premium Economy seats – Upper Deck
• 383 Economy Class including 60 Couch Seats on the main deck

In quotes

Shinya Katanozaka, President and CEO of ANA HOLDINGS INC stated:

“We will commit all three of our Airbus A380 to the Tokyo Honolulu route with the goal of introducing a new level of luxury service to our passengers flying ANA on the number one resort route for Japanese travelers,”

“We believe the A380 will become a game changer for ANA and will enable us to increase our market share by doubling the number of seats connecting Honolulu and Tokyo by 2020,” 

“The FLYING HONU is designed to offer unprecedented comfort and convenience and a world of new possibilities to ANA passengers, something that would not have been possible without the combined efforts of the Airbus and Rolls-Royce teams working closely with the dedicated professionals at ANA.”

Airbus CEO Tom Enders said

“Airbus is proud to deliver this beautiful aircraft to ANA,” 

“Offering unrivalled levels of passenger comfort, the A380 will enable ANA to increase its capacity on the busy route to Hawaii with maximum efficiency. We are confident that the aircraft will be highly successful in service with ANA and are committed to providing full support to the airline all along the way.”

A different challenge for the A380

As the Airbus A380 production winds down (with the production line ceasing in 2021), rollouts like this are something to be remembered. But also, a new challenge for the Airbus A380 which will compete against Japan Airlines.

With a full four-class service, it should be one to watch from the passenger experience viewpoint.