Originally Posted by
kamadzu4
Seem so, but won't 1 plane end up sitting in Chicago for 9 and a half hours every day?
JL10 - 11:30AM HND ---> 9:05AM ORD
JL55 - 12:30PM ORD ---> 3:15PM (+1) NRT
JL56 - 6:15PM NRT ---> 4:00PM ORD
-----9.5 hour gap------
JL9 - 1:30AM ORD ---> 4:20AM (+1) HND
Seems like inefficient utilization - at least if the plane was in Tokyo, could be doing maintenance, cleaning, etc.
Yes, but an immediate turn-around from ORD would get into HND after 10 PM, which is bad for connections and ground transportation, especially if there's a delay. ANA has an evening flight from ORD that gets into HND around 9 PM, but they have several flights to Asia leaving around midnight while JAL only has BKK and SIN.
Also, there are slot restrictions at HND and it's easier to get slots between midnight and 6 AM. JAL may well want to use a precious daytime/evening slot for a different purpose.