ANA’s first two Boeing 787 Dreamliners in Tokyo before they started passenger operations.
On November 1st, ANA celebrated one year of Boeing 787 Dreamliner operations. It is hard to believe it has already been a year. Boeing issued a press release and I wanted to share the facts and figures that ANA and Boeing have experienced during the aircraft’s first 365 days. I really hate just copying and pasting a press release, but I am a bit short on time, so the rest of this blog is a direct copy and paste:
Boeing As launch customer of the 787, ANA was the first airline in the world to offer passenger flights with the 787. During the past year, ANA 787s have flown around 9,000 flights, carrying a total of 1.8 million passengers.
ANA has achieved excellent results for the 787 over the course of the last year. ANA’s fleet of 787’s has recorded a 10% higher passenger load factor than with other aircraft, recording 82.6% on international routes and 72.8% on domestic routes. A recent passenger in-flight survey revealed that 40.4% of passengers selected their flights specifically to fly on the 787 while some 98% of passengers said they would like to fly again on 787. In addition, the 787 benefits from excellent fuel efficiency. At launch, it was anticipated that the 787 would save 20% in fuel for each international flight. ANA is pleased to confirm that the saving amounts to 21% per flight.
ANA currently has a fleet of sixteen 787s, more than any other airline in the world. In September 2012, ANA announced plans to purchase an additional eleven 787-9s, bring the total number of 787s ordered by ANA to a sixty-six.
ANA CEO and President Shinichiro Ito said “ANA is delighted with the performance of the 787’s in its fleet over the course of the last year. The 787 benefits from strong fuel efficiency with high dispatch reliability, and importantly, is well regarded by our passengers. As ANA works towards becoming Asia’s number one airline, we remain committed to the 787 to help support and drive our growth strategy”.
Raymond L. Conner, President and CEO, Commercial Airplanes of the Boeing Company said ’œWe have shared ANA’s excitement through the last year as they have shared the overwhelming response of passengers to this amazing airplane. ANA is a shining example of what can be done with the 787 — they are operating it successfully on domestic routes and international routes, while also validating its exceptional fuel performance and seeing true passenger preference.
Air New Zealand is known for their high-quality product and a bit of quirkiness, and their unique safety videos. The have had some winners, but with their last one, I was not a huge fan. My favorite was their one featuring Richard Simmons, but I could see it getting annoying if you fly the airline often.
The airline’s newest safety video is inspired by the upcoming move, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. I am guessing that Air New Zealand did not do this out of the goodness of their hearts, but they have a deal with New Line and MGM to help promote the movie. I am okay with that, especially since the video is quite entertaining.
It is more than just your average safety video. Look closely… there are “secret Elvish codes,” and if you enter them on the airline’s special website, you can win a trip for two to New Zealand. I suggest paying attention to the safety video on-board the plane and search for the clues on the ground via this video.
So what do you think? How does this compare to the airline’s other videos? It seems to be popular with almost 3.7million views at the time of posting.
HI RES IMAGE (click for larger). Air China’s new 777-300ER (B-2035)adorned with the distinctive ’˜Smiling Faces’ livery takes-off from Paine Field Airport in Everett, Washington on October 30. Image from Boeing.
When I was visiting Paine Field recently, I caught a glimpse of a special livery from Air China. Yesterday the Boeing 777-300ER was delivered to the airline and Boeing shared some background information on the unique design.
The aircraft displays 40 different smiling Chinese faces to represent the role that Chinese aviation has played in bringing China to the world.
“We hope this special-livery airplane will bridge the connection to bring a smiling, confident and friendly China to the world,” said Feng Run E, vice president of Air China. “With the airplane flying around the world, we hope more business travelers will experience the super flight comfort offered by Air China’s 777-300ER.”
HI-RES IMAGE (click for larger): Air China’s newest 777-300ER features the faces of people who were selected from a social media campaign co-organized by Air China and Boeing in July 2012. Image from Boeing.
The 40 people were chosen via a social media campaign created by Air China and Boeing earlier this year.
“Boeing is celebrating its 40th anniversary in China. Over the past four decades, we have witnessed the rapid development of China’s aviation industry and we’re honored to be part of its success by providing our best products and services,” said Ihssane Mounir, senior vice president of Sales for Greater China, Japan and Korea, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “We look forward to carrying on this great tradition of growth and development over the next 40 years.”
This is the 10th of 19 777-300ERs on order by Air China.
Batavia Air Airbus A320 in the airline’s newest livery. Image by Christian Volpati / Wikipedia.
Batavia Air is based in Jakarta, Indonesia and was founded in 2002. The airline mostly operates flights with-in Indonesia, but also to China, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and Timor-Leste.
The airline is in the process of upgrading their fleet. Right now they have a mixture of over 30 aircraft including the Airbus A320, A321, A330, Boeing 737-300, 737-400 and a 737-500.
Their newest livery is a nice combination with a front white fuselage, but colored tail. Their previously livery looks familiar, with a bit more white, but with the aircraft type clearly labeled on the side. However, nothing is quite as classic as their original livery with a double cheatline.
Ah, the classic Concorde. It was retired from service in 2003, but when this commercial was filmed in 1989, it was the plane to fly on. Yes, the concept of the Concorde flying to Mars and back is a bit silly (you have to watch it, to get it), but it doesn’t mean that it isn’t totally rad.
