Introduction: Flying to Japan to Ride the Shinkansen
Review: Japan Airlines (787-900) Premium Economy Class – Dallas to Tokyo
Review: NAA Dayroom – Narita International Airport
Review: Japan Airlines – (787-800) Economy Class – Tokyo to Bangkok
Review: Aloft Hotel – Bangkok
Review: Singapore Airlines (A330) Business Class – Bangkok to Singapore
Review: Singapore Airlines (777-300) Business Class – Singapore to Tokyo
Review: Nozomi Shinkansen – Tokyo to Fukuoka
Review: Hilton Sea Hawk – Fukuoka
Day Trip to Uminonakamichi Island
Review: Gyozaya Ninoni – Fukuoka
Review: All Nippon Airways Lounge – Fukuoka
Review: All Nippon Airways (767-300) Business Class – Fukuoka to Okinawa
Review: All Nippon Airways (737-800) Economy Class – Naha to Nagoya
Review: All Nippon Airways (Bombardier Dash 8) Economy Class – Nagoya to Tokyo
Review: 9 Hours Capsule Hotel – Narita International Airport
Review: IASS Executive Lounge – Narita International Airport
Review: TEI Lounge – Narita International Airport
Review: Japan Airlines (787-900) Economy Class – Tokyo to Dallas
NH 1205
FUK – OKA
Departure: 1000 JST
Arrival: 1140 JST
Seat: 1D
July 10, 2019
I left the lounge 30 minutes prior to departure because I did not want to have another missed flight on this trip. As I was walking out, an announcement came over the Public Address System for passengers to make their way to gate 8. Japanese people are very punctual in all things, especially the service industry, and this was no different than my previous experiences.
As I approached the gate, I noticed Group 1 was already boarding. The agents apologized for the delay but asked everyone else to remain seated until their group was called. Delay? There was not one but Japanese culture is such that the customers is ALWAYS taken care of, even if nothing is wrong. Additionally, everyone stayed seated until to their group was called, what a novel concept. Group 2 was called within two minutes of me arriving.
I found a place in line and quickly scanned my boarding pass. The agent bowed and wished me a safe, enjoyable flight to Okinawa. As I approached the aircraft door, two flight attendants welcomed me aboard. After verifying my boarding pass, I was shown to my seat. I made a quick right into the cabin and quickly found my bulkhead “throne” seat.
This 767-300 was one with ANA’s old international configuration. The 767 is now used on domestic flights, hence this review. As I continue through the review, you will see several things that are a bit outdated, but that is ok. I like flying on older aircraft. This flight reminded me of the time I flew on an American Airlines MD-80…nostalgic.
The domestic business class, also known as Premium Class, cabin was arranged in a 2-1-2 configuration, for a total of 10 seats, spread over two rows. The economy cabin was a 2-3-2 configuration with a total of 260 seats spread over 39 rows. The capacity has been reduced significantly due to the COVID. ANA operates the route with a Boeing 737 now.
Waiting at the seat were slippers, headphones, and a thick blanket. the headphones and slippers were in the “seat back” pocket, attached to the bulkhead. These were quite the amenities for such a short flight.
I was asked if I wanted a newspaper or pillow by a flight attendant, both items were declined. Some passengers received water, while others did not. Maybe those receiving the water asked for it? I tried to settle into the seat, but the hard skydive landing was still taking its toll on me.
We still had some time before departure so I checked out the rest of the seat. There was an individual reading lamp on the right side of the seat, it can seen in the pictures above. A massive tray table was stored in the right armrest. It took some doing to remove the table.
A cool feature about the seat were the Do Not Disturb/Wake Me for Meals “buttons”. Most longhaul aircraft have some variant of these buttons attached to the flight attendant call lights, but this 767-300 had these cool things…
How cool is that?! The seat adjusters and Inflight Entertainment (IFE) controller were located in the left armrest. I played with the seat until it was time to taxi.
Speaking of IFE, the screen was mounted on the bulkhead wall. It was typically of a screen you would find on a United 737 in business class.
Boarding was complete seven minutes ahead of scheduled departure. The forward cabin doors were closed three minutes later. All of the attendants stood near their doors for the command to arm. Once the command was given, they armed the doors and then went to the opposite door to check the other attendant’s work. This was something I had not witnessed before.
The welcome aboard announcement was made at departure. The safety demonstration followed soon thereafter. There was a safety demonstration played on the IFE and performed by the flight attendants.
We pushed back from the gate just six minutes after the doors closed, which meant we were two minutes behind. I watched the taxi from the camera since I was not able to look out of a window.
The plane was unusually hot at this point. The lack of individual air nozzles did not help. To that point, I never heard another person say a word, about the temperature or anything else during the flight. Everyone was so considerate of each other. I felt as if I was the only person in the plane.
We taxied for about 20 minutes before having a rolling takeoff. The climb was a little bumpy but not too bad. Before long, we were in the clouds.
The flight attendant announced our flight time to Okinawa was a short, 86 minutes. She also announced that we could recline our seats and use the tray tables. I took the opportunity to take a picture of the menu as service was beginning.
The flight attendants soon appeared freshened up with aprons. The first thing she did was ask if it was ok for her to remove my tray table. Breakfast was offered because the flight departed before 1029. There was no description but I received this.
The bento box consisted of two small sandwiches, one veggie and one chicken. There was also a small noodle side, corn porridge and salmon bruschetta. The bento was accompanied by a bowl of onion soup.
Everything was delicious and I did not feel stuffed after eating it. I requested a highball and apple juice to drink. This was strange because I am used to getting drinks first.
The flight attendants passed through numerous times throughout the meal service offering drink refills and checking on passengers. They cleared trays as soon passengers were finished with their meals. After eating, I decided to to check the WiFi as there were placards throughout the cabin for it. I was surprised to see it was complimentary! What a time to be alive.
I took this flight following picture and laughed out loud when I looked at the departure/destination airport codes. It does not take much to amuse me.
I surfed the internet for awhile then decided to check out the lavatory. There were two forward of the Premium Class Cabin. They were a bit dated but remained spotless on the flight.
We began landing preps 15 minutes before arrival. The WiFi worked throughout landing and the flight attendants even provided more drinks, talk about service. We had a rough touchdown just five minutes after the scheduled arrival. After a short 10 minute taxi, we arrived at our gate.
Final Word
This short flight to Okinawa was well worth the $80 USD spent on the upgrade at check in. The ANA Business Class lounge and the bulkhead throne seat offered me a bit of comfort after days of travel and stress. The offerings on the flight and the overall service of the lovely ANA crew, were some of the best I have experienced, regardless of domestic or international flight.
