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All Nippon Airways Co., Ltd., also known as ANA is a Japanese airline and a member of Star Alliance. They have released several themed jets through the years including two (in 2015) featuring R2-D2 and BB-8 from Star Wars as well as several tied to anime franchise, Demon Slayer (these came out in 2021 and 2022).
Now, they’re offering fans of Pokémon the opportunity to fly on a Pikachu-themed jet. It will enter service on June 4th and feature a colorful array of popular characters from the hit game and TV franchise. From the release:
The “Pikachu Jet NH” aircraft features a livery designed for ANA, in which the Sky High Pokémon Rayquaza is depicted across the entire fuselage to create a vivid effect. Charizard, Latias, Latios, Vivillon, and other flying Pokémon from all over the Pokémon world move together with Pikachu toward the shining rays of hope and endless possibilities of an interconnected world. Pokémon are also hidden inside the engines, so please keep an eye out for them when boarding on your next adventure with the Pikachu Jet!”
I love this colorful livery and when airlines tie pop culture into the painting of the fuselage and livery. The interior design of the jet and special merchandise will be released soon. The Pikachu Jet will be found on the following routes from June 4th through October 28th:
- Haneda-Bangkok (NH847/NH850/NH849/NH848)
- Haneda-Singapore (NH841/NH844/NH843/NH842)
- Haneda-Jakarta (NH855/NH856)
- Haneda-Manila (NH869/NH870)
- Haneda-Ho Chi Minh (NH891/NH892)
- Haneda-Delhi (NH837/NH838)
- Haneda-Sydney (NH879/NH880/NH889/NH890)
- Haneda-Vancouver (NH116/NH115)
- Haneda-Honolulu (NH186/NH185)
I was fortunate to fly on United’s Star Wars plane when it was in service. Not only did it have half the plane painted for the light side and half for the dark side, but inside the seats were divided up between these factions as well.
Other Star Alliance member, EVA Air has had Hello Kitty planes for many years and these recently went back into service as well. They take it a step further with everything onboard from menus to toilet paper on theme.
Apparently, ANA is not the first carrier to fly a Pokémon jet and several others already have them in the air including the Pikachu jets by Skymark (Japan), China Airlines (Taiwan), T’Way (South Korea), and Scoot (Singapore). This is all part of the Pokémon Air Adventures project, which is meant to encourage people to fly again after the COVID-19 pandemic. Thanks to Economy Class & Beyond for reporting this first.
Anthony’s Take: I got a huge rush from flying United’s Star Wars plane and want to check out both Pikachu on ANA and Hello Kitty on EVA Air. These planes offer small touches that add a little something extra to everyday air travel. I hope that airlines continue to seek out new partnership and colorful liveries.
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Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
