BOOKED: Japan Airlines vs. ANA Domestic Showdown (I’m Flying A 767!!!!!)

Earlier this week, I shared the two aircraft types that I’d not flown before – the 767 and 757. In doing so, I asked for ways that I could try and piece together both flights into an itinerary. I received quite a few helpful comments, mainly saying that I could fly Delta to the U.S. and pick up a transcontinental flight there. That’s still a plan that I hope to be able to execute soon.

Separately, I shared details of a trip I’m taking to Australia, where I’d be doing a review trip back including Air New Zealand and ANA premium economy. (I’ve since learned that Air New Zealand normally operates their brand-new 787 from Auckland to Hong Kong, but just wasn’t on the day of the week I’m flying – grr.) I’ve got some spare time with a 24h 20m layover in Tokyo, and originally was planning to explore a bit more of the city.

Well, I’m sure I’ll be back in Tokyo soon – I’ve actually now found a way to survey the Japanese travel scene, and also knock off a bucket list item…

I’m flying Japan Airlines’ 767!

I land in Haneda from Seoul in the morning, and I’ll drop my bag off at the airport hotel. Then, I’ll head to Terminal 1, Haneda’s domestic terminal, and fly Japan Airlines’ 767 to Osaka-Itami Airport. I figured that while there are lots of interesting cabin products to try and the 767’s not the newest bird in the fleet, it’ll be worth trying the 767 for the first time.

Japan Airlines 767 at Narita Airport

Does Japan Airlines have the newest seats on their 767s? No, not even domestically. However, their slimline seats do have USB-C charging, and I’m also curious to see what the domestic travel scene is like (I’ve also picked a seat where apparently I can get a great view of Mount Fuji, if the weather’s good!).

Japan Airlines’ 767 economy class (credit: Oscape.world)

I booked this using a mere 7,500 AAdvantage miles, and believe it or not, there was zero tax on this ticket.

I’m then flying ANA’s 777 straight back to Haneda

From Osaka-Itami, I’ll then be flying ANA’s 777 back to Haneda. Now, I’ve been to Osaka before (despite never flying out of Itami Airport), and I wish I got to fly into one of a few different airports, including in Hokkaido, Okinawa, or Kyushu. However, I figure that for a direct turn lasting a day, it’s probably worth having the flexibility to choose from one of the highest-frequency routes within Japan’s domestic network (I definitely need to plan to fly more within Japan in the future, as the aviation industry is so interesting there).

I had the chance to fly ANA’s 787 (787-9, not one of their brand spanking new domestic 787-10s unfortunately), so why did I pick the 777? Well, firstly I get a bit of time to visit Osaka, and still be back in Tokyo for an evening commitment – however, secondly I was also intrigued by the fact that the 777s feature live TV, whereas the 787s don’t. Also, how stunning is this cabin, especially considering the plane doesn’t see flights of over three hours!?

ANA Domestic 777 Economy Class (credit: Runway Girl Network)

I called Virgin Atlantic to use points on this ticket, which cost 7,500 Virgin Points and £3.70 in taxes. Is this the best ever use of Virgin points? No – Virgin sometimes charges as low as 6,000 points for a one-way flight to New York. However, this was still way lower than my average acquisition cost of Virgin points, and I get a healthy dose of Virgin Points through the Virgin Trains app anyway, so the opportunity cost for me was rather low.

How should I make the most of my flights?

I have a few aims of doing this direct turn in Osaka:

• I want to try the 767 for the first time, and this seemed like a great opportunity to do so
• Many travel between cities in Japan, and I’d love to review the domestic travel scene there: not just which airline is best, but also what generally to expect when flying domestically within Japan
• I guess I’d like to know how JAL and ANA fare against each other as well (though there are many more domestic players within Japan, and I’d love to try them too at some point)

If I were purely to see whether JAL or ANA’s domestic offering was best, I’d fly Japan Airlines’ 787/A350 vs. ANA’s 777/787 and compare the two, either in economy or comparing Japan Airlines’ first class against ANA’s Premium class (as those are most comparable). However, in that case I wouldn’t be able to fly the 767. So even going in, I’m not actually comparing apples to apples this time round, as I’m comparing an older Japan Airlines plane against ANA’s latest and greatest.

So in that case, what would be most useful of a review?

• Should I pay the £10.54 (2,200 JPY) to upgrade to Class J, Japan Airlines’ “premium economy seat with economy service”, assuming there’s space? This seems like a no-brainer, though I wouldn’t be able to compare Japan Airlines against ANA anymore, since ANA doesn’t have an equivalent (also Class J doesn’t come with priority boarding, which might not be great in terms of cabin photos).
• Or should I go further, and spend £58 (12,000 JPY) upgrading to first class?
• Similarly, should I try to upgrade my Osaka-Haneda flight for £52.71 (11,000 JPY) just for the review? It seems like something that could be worth trying, just so I can report back on what the experience is (both Premium Class, as well as the experience of buying up at the airport counter).
• Either way, it seems to be possible to buy my way into lounges both in Haneda and Osaka, so I might do that just for the review.
• Or is there another route that I could fly? I’d like to fly a 767 either way, though I’d also be keen to try an ANA 787-10. Unfortunately the other frequent route is the Sapporo route, and ANA award space is quite low that day.

At the end of the day, I’m keen to write content that is useful for those actually flying within Japan, but also interesting to those who just want to see what it’s like

Conclusion

In this post, I shared a travel detour I’d booked during my 24h 20m Tokyo layover. I’m generally fascinated by Japan’s domestic travel scene, and can’t wait to do a couple of flights domestically to see what it’s like. I’d also appreciate some input on what kind of content would be most interesting to you guys.

What reviews would you like to read – a review of economy, Class J, or First Class/premium? Is there anything in particular I should observe? At Osaka-Itami, what should I do to maximise my few hours there?