Originally Posted by mad_atta

Perhaps surprisingly, Tokyo to Sydney is almost exactly the same distance as those two routes - it's only 34 miles longer than Tokyo - Vancouver: A map from the Great Circle Mapper - Great Circle Mapper



I'm pretty sure this is is just a one-off, for operational reasons. There is in fact a second SYD-HND flight that day, departing at midday instead of 9am, and on a 789 which is tantalisingly wide open in business class, however work commitments preclude me from being able to take that flight (which would also mean having to pay for a night's accommodation in Tokyo). It's a shame they couldn't switch the 788 onto that non-overnight flight.

Anyway, I've emailed ANA asking for compensation. My expectations are not high, but let's see what happens.