Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) operates a mixed bag of planes that range from smaller Airbus aircraft to the A380. Like most airlines, the travel downturn has knocked ANA around. But a look at what planes All Nippon Airways has in the air now suggests the airline is faring better than many others.
The bulk of ANA’s fleet is flying
Having sent their final Boeing 747 off into retirement in 2014, All Nippon Airways now has seven main aircraft types in its fleet. That includes Airbus A320s, Airbus A321s, Airbus A380s, Boeing 737s, Boeing 767s, Boeing 777s, and Boeing 787s. Of the 239 planes in the ANA fleet, 216 (or around 90%) are currently flying.
All Nippon Airways has 14 Airbus A320s in their fleet, including three Airbus A320-200s which are currently parked. These three planes came over from ANA’s now-defunct low-cost subsidiary Vanilla Air between October 2019 and January 2020. The remaining 11 Airbus A320s operated by All Nippon Airways are Airbus A320neos. The first arrived in December 2016 and the most recent last March.
A breakdown of ANA’s Airbus A321 aircraft reveals a similar situation with A321-200s and the A321neos. In total, the airline has 18 Airbus A321 planes. All Nippon Airways has four A321-200s and 14 Airbus A321neos. All are operating except for one A321neo. Aviation database, planespotters.net indicates JA143A isn’t flying. That plane only arrived in December.
Like the small Airbus planes, All Nippon Airways’ Boeing 737 fleet is not usually seen outside Japan. But there are 46 of them and alongside the Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft, the 737s form the backbone of ANA’s domestic fleet. Of the airline’s 46 Boeing 737s, there are seven Boeing 737-700 aircraft and 39 Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Only one ANA 737 is parked – JA72AN, a Boeing 737-800.
ANA one of the few airlines operating all three Dreamliner variants
Moving onto mid-sized planes, All Nippon Airways is presently operating 25 of their 32 Boeing 767-300s. Of those 32 Boeing 767-300s, nine are configured as freighters. With freight proving a lifeline for many airlines in 2020, it is unsurprising to see all of those freighters in the air. The remaining 23 Boeing 767-300s are passenger planes. The oldest, JA604A, arrived in Japan in 1997. The youngest ANA Boeing 767 configured for passengers is JA627A. That plane arrived in 2012 and is one of seven 767s All Nippon Airways has parked.
Of the various aircraft types in its fleet, the most plentiful are the 787 Dreamliners. ANA has 74 of the popular Boeings in its fleet. Of those 74, 67 are presently flying. In the Dreamliner fleet are 36 Boeing 787-8s, 36 Boeing 787-9s, and just a pair of 787-10s. Both those 787-10s sit parked as are five of the 787-8s. All of All Nippon Airways 787-9s are flying.
Moving on the Boeing 777 aircraft, ANA operates 52 of them, of which 50 are flying. JA713A and JA785A are parked. In the fleet are two Boeing 777 freighters, 16 Boeing 777-200s, and 34 Boeing 777-300s.
All Nippon Airways has one A380 flying
Finally, ANA has a handful of high-profile A380s. These aircraft normally fly the busy Japan-Hawaii route and are well-known for their colorful livery. Two of the three A380s sit parked – JA382A and JA383A. The third A380 is flying, albeit not very often. However, over the New Year Weekend, JA381A made a splash operating a “Hatsuhinode Flight” or “First Sunrise Flight” to celebrate the start of the new year.
While international movements in and out of Japan remain stymied by border and travel restrictions, internal travel within Japan is proving resilient. That helps keep ANA’s planes and crews in the air – a bit of aviation good news at the start of 2021.
