Jan 3, 2015, 3:35 am
Last edit by: ArizonaGuy
Japan Airlines Flight JL001
San Francisco to Tokyo/Haneda (SFO-HND)
Effective 01 Jan to 08 Mar, 2015
Japan Airlines Flight JL002
Tokyo/Haneda to San Francisco (HND-SFO)
Effective 01 Jan to 08 Mar, 2015
Equipment: Boeing 777-300ER (77W)
Seating Config: W83/W84, aka SS7
JAL SS7 info: http://www.jal.co.jp/en/newsky/ss7/
JAL SS7 seatmap: http://www.jal.co.jp/en/aircraft/conf/777.html
Discussion on SS7 rollout (FT): http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/japan...-seat-map.html
San Francisco to Tokyo/Haneda (SFO-HND)
Effective 01 Jan to 08 Mar, 2015
- Departs from SFO at 00:45 (daily)
- Arrives into HND at 05:00+1
Japan Airlines Flight JL002
Tokyo/Haneda to San Francisco (HND-SFO)
Effective 01 Jan to 08 Mar, 2015
- Departs from HND at 00:05 (daily)
- Arrives into SFO at 16:25-1
Equipment: Boeing 777-300ER (77W)
Seating Config: W83/W84, aka SS7
- 8 First Class (NEW JAL SUITE)
- 49 Business Class (JAL SKY SUITE)
- 40 Premium Economy (JAL SKY PREMIUM)
- 135 Economy seats (JAL SKY WIDER)
JAL SS7 info: http://www.jal.co.jp/en/newsky/ss7/
JAL SS7 seatmap: http://www.jal.co.jp/en/aircraft/conf/777.html
Discussion on SS7 rollout (FT): http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/japan...-seat-map.html
new F route: SFO-HND
Apr 16, 2015, 2:22 pm
#76
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: NRT / HND
Programs: AA EXP, NH Plat, Former UA 1K
Posts: 5,665
For those who have taken this flight from HND-SFO, was there any offer for an arrivals lounge in SFO? After missing my chance to get the LAX flight waiting for my Diners points to transfer, I decided to take this one. Going to be stuck in SFO for 6 hours, flying out on *A domestic, so an arrivals lounge invitation (even if for one of the OneWorld departure lounges) would be excellent. May have to suck it up and pay $50 for the Centurion lounge if not, no way in h*ll I'm paying for the United Club.
Apr 27, 2015, 1:57 am
#78
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: NRT / HND
Programs: AA EXP, NH Plat, Former UA 1K
Posts: 5,665
Enjoy. My flight was quite good overall. The cabin attendants were all really on top of their game, English was surprisingly good (at least all the ones serving F that night). Salon champagne is excellent as are the 30 year old Port and the red wines. Bed is quite comfortable and spacious. Pajamas given were L size, which were entirely too large for me (I wear S in normal American sized clothes and occasionally M in Japanese sized clothes) but did their job. I noticed they gave an L size set to the guy next door in 1A too, so don't know if this is standard practice for foreign passengers or if L is all they stock. Overall I actually preferred them to ANA, though anytime when on revenue tickets I fly *A almost exclusively. Within the past 8 months I've also flown OZ (A380) F and UA F, needless to say UA doesn't compare, but this beats OZ hands down (except the menu), far more refined service.
One of the points that impressed me the most was that when the lead flight attendant greeted me, she immediately apologized for my requested (regular menu) meal not being available on the SFO flight. So apparently my request with the call center 2 days before was made known to the cabin crew even though they were powerless to do anything about it. What I like most about this is that someone took note of it and hopefully will also get that info to the person/team planning menus on this flight so they can pull their head out of their rear end and realize that at least some passengers want a regular meal service on the midnight flight rather than the breakfast and abbreviated a-la-carte menu. The menu was the one and only downside on this flight in my opinion.
One of the points that impressed me the most was that when the lead flight attendant greeted me, she immediately apologized for my requested (regular menu) meal not being available on the SFO flight. So apparently my request with the call center 2 days before was made known to the cabin crew even though they were powerless to do anything about it. What I like most about this is that someone took note of it and hopefully will also get that info to the person/team planning menus on this flight so they can pull their head out of their rear end and realize that at least some passengers want a regular meal service on the midnight flight rather than the breakfast and abbreviated a-la-carte menu. The menu was the one and only downside on this flight in my opinion.
Apr 27, 2015, 10:31 am
#79
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: SAN
Posts: 487
Enjoy. My flight was quite good overall. The cabin attendants were all really on top of their game, English was surprisingly good (at least all the ones serving F that night). Salon champagne is excellent as are the 30 year old Port and the red wines. Bed is quite comfortable and spacious. Pajamas given were L size, which were entirely too large for me (I wear S in normal American sized clothes and occasionally M in Japanese sized clothes) but did their job. I noticed they gave an L size set to the guy next door in 1A too, so don't know if this is standard practice for foreign passengers or if L is all they stock. Overall I actually preferred them to ANA, though anytime when on revenue tickets I fly *A almost exclusively. Within the past 8 months I've also flown OZ (A380) F and UA F, needless to say UA doesn't compare, but this beats OZ hands down (except the menu), far more refined service.
One of the points that impressed me the most was that when the lead flight attendant greeted me, she immediately apologized for my requested (regular menu) meal not being available on the SFO flight. So apparently my request with the call center 2 days before was made known to the cabin crew even though they were powerless to do anything about it. What I like most about this is that someone took note of it and hopefully will also get that info to the person/team planning menus on this flight so they can pull their head out of their rear end and realize that at least some passengers want a regular meal service on the midnight flight rather than the breakfast and abbreviated a-la-carte menu. The menu was the one and only downside on this flight in my opinion.
One of the points that impressed me the most was that when the lead flight attendant greeted me, she immediately apologized for my requested (regular menu) meal not being available on the SFO flight. So apparently my request with the call center 2 days before was made known to the cabin crew even though they were powerless to do anything about it. What I like most about this is that someone took note of it and hopefully will also get that info to the person/team planning menus on this flight so they can pull their head out of their rear end and realize that at least some passengers want a regular meal service on the midnight flight rather than the breakfast and abbreviated a-la-carte menu. The menu was the one and only downside on this flight in my opinion.
Apr 27, 2015, 11:30 am
#80
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2000
Posts: 16,093
Apr 27, 2015, 12:11 pm
#81
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: SAN
Posts: 487
I've always flown *A for the majority of my life, so thought I could get closer to the million mile mark with them. But, to be honest AAdvantage miles are hard to beat for me so I've considered putting all of my loyalty to them (I fly to Japan very often, so off peak AA rates can't be beat) but my work takes my on *A sooo. It's tough, but I prefer *A for revenue. Hard to switch completely when I've already invested quite a bit into *A.
Apr 27, 2015, 9:51 pm
#82
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: NRT / HND
Programs: AA EXP, NH Plat, Former UA 1K
Posts: 5,665
I only flew JL the other direction, returned to Japan on NH, so no. There was no arrivals lounge service in SFO, so I used the Centurion lounge (very good BTW).
It's mostly based on my own history and personal choice. I've been with Continental and then United for years. I don't fly enough to gain high tier status in more than one alliance and *A is more generous with mileage earning than OW (that's a general statement I know, as each program is different but I think most people will earn more elite miles and redeemable miles in *A). I would get slightly better benefits as EXP in AAdvantage but 100k EQM in AAdvantage is more of a stretch because of the massive penalty when flying discount economy on many partners. I also fly fairly often in Africa and not counting the miniature franchise of BA in South Africa, that's a giant black hole for OW aside from the handful of flights from Europe & Doha and then RJ into some of the Arabic speaking countries in the north. Intra-Africa is for the most part non-existent with OW at the moment while it is quite easy using ET and SA for *A or KQ for ST folks. For a person who primarily flies to less remote places like North America, Europe, and Asia then OW's coverage is more than sufficient and most of the airlines in the alliance are undoubtedly good quality. Also I find premium cabin award availability to be just as good in OW as *A, so it's a toss up there. There is unfortunately no blanket best solution for everyone, for my situation *A makes more sense but for someone else OW will make more sense. Having heavy spend on the Japanese version of the Diners Club card is really nice since I have UA, AA, and BA all as transfer partners at 1:1 ratios giving me access to the best of both worlds (well and SQ if I have the urge to blow a ton of points on Suites).
It's mostly based on my own history and personal choice. I've been with Continental and then United for years. I don't fly enough to gain high tier status in more than one alliance and *A is more generous with mileage earning than OW (that's a general statement I know, as each program is different but I think most people will earn more elite miles and redeemable miles in *A). I would get slightly better benefits as EXP in AAdvantage but 100k EQM in AAdvantage is more of a stretch because of the massive penalty when flying discount economy on many partners. I also fly fairly often in Africa and not counting the miniature franchise of BA in South Africa, that's a giant black hole for OW aside from the handful of flights from Europe & Doha and then RJ into some of the Arabic speaking countries in the north. Intra-Africa is for the most part non-existent with OW at the moment while it is quite easy using ET and SA for *A or KQ for ST folks. For a person who primarily flies to less remote places like North America, Europe, and Asia then OW's coverage is more than sufficient and most of the airlines in the alliance are undoubtedly good quality. Also I find premium cabin award availability to be just as good in OW as *A, so it's a toss up there. There is unfortunately no blanket best solution for everyone, for my situation *A makes more sense but for someone else OW will make more sense. Having heavy spend on the Japanese version of the Diners Club card is really nice since I have UA, AA, and BA all as transfer partners at 1:1 ratios giving me access to the best of both worlds (well and SQ if I have the urge to blow a ton of points on Suites).
Apr 28, 2015, 12:42 pm
#83
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: SAN
Posts: 487
I only flew JL the other direction, returned to Japan on NH, so no. There was no arrivals lounge service in SFO, so I used the Centurion lounge (very good BTW).
It's mostly based on my own history and personal choice. I've been with Continental and then United for years. I don't fly enough to gain high tier status in more than one alliance and *A is more generous with mileage earning than OW (that's a general statement I know, as each program is different but I think most people will earn more elite miles and redeemable miles in *A). I would get slightly better benefits as EXP in AAdvantage but 100k EQM in AAdvantage is more of a stretch because of the massive penalty when flying discount economy on many partners. I also fly fairly often in Africa and not counting the miniature franchise of BA in South Africa, that's a giant black hole for OW aside from the handful of flights from Europe & Doha and then RJ into some of the Arabic speaking countries in the north. Intra-Africa is for the most part non-existent with OW at the moment while it is quite easy using ET and SA for *A or KQ for ST folks. For a person who primarily flies to less remote places like North America, Europe, and Asia then OW's coverage is more than sufficient and most of the airlines in the alliance are undoubtedly good quality. Also I find premium cabin award availability to be just as good in OW as *A, so it's a toss up there. There is unfortunately no blanket best solution for everyone, for my situation *A makes more sense but for someone else OW will make more sense. Having heavy spend on the Japanese version of the Diners Club card is really nice since I have UA, AA, and BA all as transfer partners at 1:1 ratios giving me access to the best of both worlds (well and SQ if I have the urge to blow a ton of points on Suites).
It's mostly based on my own history and personal choice. I've been with Continental and then United for years. I don't fly enough to gain high tier status in more than one alliance and *A is more generous with mileage earning than OW (that's a general statement I know, as each program is different but I think most people will earn more elite miles and redeemable miles in *A). I would get slightly better benefits as EXP in AAdvantage but 100k EQM in AAdvantage is more of a stretch because of the massive penalty when flying discount economy on many partners. I also fly fairly often in Africa and not counting the miniature franchise of BA in South Africa, that's a giant black hole for OW aside from the handful of flights from Europe & Doha and then RJ into some of the Arabic speaking countries in the north. Intra-Africa is for the most part non-existent with OW at the moment while it is quite easy using ET and SA for *A or KQ for ST folks. For a person who primarily flies to less remote places like North America, Europe, and Asia then OW's coverage is more than sufficient and most of the airlines in the alliance are undoubtedly good quality. Also I find premium cabin award availability to be just as good in OW as *A, so it's a toss up there. There is unfortunately no blanket best solution for everyone, for my situation *A makes more sense but for someone else OW will make more sense. Having heavy spend on the Japanese version of the Diners Club card is really nice since I have UA, AA, and BA all as transfer partners at 1:1 ratios giving me access to the best of both worlds (well and SQ if I have the urge to blow a ton of points on Suites).
Apr 29, 2015, 6:42 pm
#84
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: NRT / HND
Programs: AA EXP, NH Plat, Former UA 1K
Posts: 5,665
EDIT - Relevance to this thread: Some people/companies outright buy F & A fares but many don't. Many people enjoining this wonderful seat on the HND-SFO route are relying on points or cash & points combo (upgrades from C), or RTW fares to sit here. Diners points are one of the very powerful ways to fly F on this HND-SFO route for high spenders whose companies don't otherwise foot the bill for full F & A fares. Right now Citi is very foreigner friendly, but anyone who's lived here knows many Japanese banks are not, so time to get a new card easily could be limited.
Last edited by dvs7310; Apr 30, 2015 at 1:38 am
May 7, 2015, 6:38 pm
#86
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 263
But it's 001
Due to fly this in F. The route time is bizarre, the JAL SFO Sakura lounge is a dump, the PJs too large, English is spoken broken, the F menu is very limited, the JAL HND arrivals lounge is closed, JAL's domestic lounges open at 5:30 a.m. earliest, showers at 6:30 a.m. while the flt arr. has averaged 4:15 a.m. Oh, but the bed is rated as good and the flight number is 001. One-way F fares quoted at $11,000! Right. Is the SFO CX lounge perferable to the Skarua? JAL doesn't have it together.
May 7, 2015, 6:51 pm
#87
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2000
Posts: 16,093
Due to fly this in F. The route time is bizarre, the JAL SFO Sakura lounge is a dump, the PJs too large, English is spoken broken, the F menu is very limited, the JAL HND arrivals lounge is closed, JAL's domestic lounges open at 5:30 a.m. earliest, showers at 6:30 a.m. while the flt arr. has averaged 4:15 a.m. Oh, but the bed is rated as good and the flight number is 001. One-way F fares quoted at $11,000! Right. Is the SFO CX lounge perferable to the Skarua? JAL doesn't have it together.
May 7, 2015, 6:53 pm
#88
Ambassador: Japan Airlines
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: LAX
Programs: JAL Mileage Bank, JMB Diamond, oneworld Emerald, Bonvoy Platinum
Posts: 16,395
Due to fly this in F. The route time is bizarre, the JAL SFO Sakura lounge is a dump, the PJs too large, English is spoken broken, the F menu is very limited, the JAL HND arrivals lounge is closed, JAL's domestic lounges open at 5:30 a.m. earliest, showers at 6:30 a.m. while the flt arr. has averaged 4:15 a.m. Oh, but the bed is rated as good and the flight number is 001. One-way F fares quoted at $11,000! Right. Is the SFO CX lounge perferable to the Skarua? JAL doesn't have it together.
Last edited by JALPak; May 7, 2015 at 7:01 pm
May 7, 2015, 7:32 pm
#89
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 46
Due to fly this in F. The route time is bizarre, the JAL SFO Sakura lounge is a dump, the PJs too large, English is spoken broken, the F menu is very limited, the JAL HND arrivals lounge is closed, JAL's domestic lounges open at 5:30 a.m. earliest, showers at 6:30 a.m. while the flt arr. has averaged 4:15 a.m. Oh, but the bed is rated as good and the flight number is 001. One-way F fares quoted at $11,000! Right. Is the SFO CX lounge perferable to the Skarua? JAL doesn't have it together.
May 7, 2015, 7:39 pm
#90
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 263
On a OW award ticket. Yes, I would much rather fly CX F instead ( am searching daily for alternatives) especially for arriving at HKG vice Haneda which is an unmitigated hobcobbled/patchwork/hotchpotch (take your pick) shambolic affair. It's only ranked high because it isn't a hundred klicks from central Tokyo like NRT. Haneda is a great example of greed: ramping up international long haul traffic way before they've worked out the logistics, especially the airlines themselves, e.g. the closure of the JAL arrivals lounge.