ANA A380 Flying Honu Inaugural Flight Tokyo Honolulu

ANA All Nippon Airways have started flying their Airbus A380 "Flying Honu" between Tokyo Narita and Honolulu on 24 May 2019. I was among the first passengers to fly on the inaugural flight. There were lot of good celebrations at the boarding gate and on-board.
This is a detail trip report of the first ANA A380 “Flying Honu” themed flight in Business Class. Throughout the video, I also looked into other unique features on this ANA flight including ANA Couchii, economy class and premium economy. In next video, I will review ANA A380 First Class from Honolulu to Tokyo.
See my other videos on the ANA A380 Flying Honu:
ANA A380 Delivery ceremony: • ANA First A380 "FLYING...
ANA A380 Cabin Tour: • ANA A380 Flying Honu C...
Subscribe to my channel, Sam Chui, for more aviation, trip report and flight report videos.
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On 24th May 2019, following on from my video exploring the delivery of All Nippon Airway’s first, brand new Airbus A380 Flying Honu aeroplane, decorated in a spectacular, lively and bright blue sea turtle themed livery, I took the A380 Flying Honu’s first ever, inaugural flight from Narita International Airport, close to Tokyo, Japan in the Chiba district to Honolulu, Hawaii in the United States in ANA business class.
It was a very enjoyable flight and experience and even before I boarded, I had the honour of witnessing the ceremony to mark the inaugural flight of the Flying Honu with music, dancing and a set of very cute, life-sized plush turtles, each one representing one of the blue, green and orange ANA Flying Honu liveries - look out for these guys later in the video, as they feature in what has to be the world’s cutest pre-flight safety video you’ve ever seen!
Before flying, I meet the designer of the blue, sea turtle aeroplane livery and I also meet Yuji Hirako, the CEO and president of ANA, who gives out free gifts to myself and all the passengers, including a special fold up bag and fun, souvenir Honu ANA Hawaii t-shirts!
On board, I have the opportunity to examine the on-board facilities and service. The aeroplane is very geared towards looking after families with young children. Its Couchii section in economy class provides an area for young families where children can lounge and lie across multiple seats - groups of four seats have cushions which, when lifted up, form one long seat to lounge back on as if you were in business class! It’s great for young children to be able to take a nap when they need it and it promotes a more relaxed atmosphere for young families, with children who may find it hard to be restricted to a single seat for the whole flight, especially on a long haul flight from Japan to the United States like this one.
The child friendly facilities don’t end there - I take the chance to assess the nappy changing room on board, which has been designed with baby’s needs in mind from start to finish, and I also look at the dedicated baby food and even baby cutlery provided on board - All Nippon Airways new flying Honu is definitely an aeroplane that you can trust to get you and your children from A to B in comfort and in an environment which is a home from home.
The inaugural flight of the flying Honu is the perfect time for me to check out the on-board catering. I go for the Japanese option which consists of a large number of smaller items including beef, fish, other seafood, rice and fruit - the appetiser, the starter (soup), the main meal and the dessert are all served together on one tray so that you can eat it at your leisure - the service was a little slow, but I’m sure this will improve in time; the quality of the food, however, was excellent.
I have a lie down after my meal - the sleeping arrangements in business class consist of a long bed with plenty of room; just watch that you don’t get your feet stuck!
Throughout the video, I have the chance to discuss this special, maiden flight of the ANA Flying Honu with fellow aviation enthusiasts and people who people who live and breathe the Airbus A380. It’s great to hear other people’s opinions on this maiden flight and I want to hear your opinion too - let me know what you thought of the whole experience down in the comments section below and, as always, thanks for watching!

[@SamChui]

Thank you for your kind support. I've spent the whole night (about 10 hours) in editing (plus hours of filming on the plane) so it's time to sleep now after the content is made. (Who said my life is easy? ;P) Stay tuned next week for the Flying Honu ANA A380 First Class Review!

[@alexrobins5240]

Sam Chui Yeah love your videos from England! Keep up the great work 👍

[@manuelfarias6002]

Enjoy your sleep Sam

[@harrydoherty8299]

Liked like everyone enjoyed this event .video looked new and fresh.I could feel the excitement.

[@BlazedKitten86]

Thanks for all your hard work in editing and putting these videos out. I like to live vicariously through you and travel the world! 😉

[@smartmoneyinstitution9279]

Premium content Sam, many thanks

[@哥们依旧稳定发力]

Japan is a wonderful country, got a chance to Japan last week to Kansai first and fly back from Haneda.It left a deep impression on me.

[@paulsolaman4729]

Japan is really above everything when it comes to service

[@truevices]

Yup, I love their hospitality.

[@yourneighborhoodwierdo8349]

they're like a light year ahead of the rest of the world

[@lareehart2758]

That is one of the coolest liveries I’ve ever seen on an A380! Awesome!

[@SamChui]

Indeed. Love the ocean blue and turtle.

[@Oliveira-mm9no]

have you seen the A380 by the portuguese HiFLY? It's pretty beautiful also

[@lareehart2758]

Leonard Andrei because I like delta a lot

[@LeeAviation]

Leonard Andrei He just likes delta 😂

[@LeeAviation]

Leonard Andrei Because why not...and why u so curious? 😂

[@stapler3063]

That’s probably the cutest Safety vid ever 😍😍

[@SamChui]

Yeah it was so cute!

[@MuhammadArif-ko3fx]

Airbus A380 this is great aircraft

[@Adam-wf7xk]

@@SamChui let's get to New Zealand I have your Instagram

[@kajiuman685]

@@SamChui do the aivacan

[@epicjaxon87]

@@MuhammadArif-ko3fx it is good!

[@rendratryhermawan8628]

A380 is Quiet aircraft + Japanese people are more Quite than another country. A380 that operated by Japanese airlines = The Most Comfortable Flight EVER...

[@kuriyamatidusflossy]

True, Japanese people are the best behaving people in public

[@user_rhdqntlfgek]

@@kuriyamatidusflossy Ya that's right. I am Korean, but I really want to emulate the Japanese' caring behavior.

[@rendratryhermawan8628]

@@theselinnn yes that right, but i was talking about this video, A380 that operated by ANA.

[@rendratryhermawan8628]

@@kuriyamatidusflossy that's right, japanese is superb

[@paulcharles5128]

Hyung-Woo Kim Ya. Just a pity they forgot their caring behaviour in Nanking.

[@AverytheCubanAmerican]

Glad the A380 is still somewhat living. ANA is a great airline and Honolulu is a beautiful city. I also like Narita airport, their express train is convenient with a rail pass

[@natewarecki]

Avery The Cuban-American ANA: Great Airline Honolulu: Great city Narita: Convenient Rail Pass😂

[@natewarecki]

Avery The Cuban-American I’m sorry I wasn’t trying to offend you. I don’t see anything wrong with what you said either. I just thought the rail pass thing was funny after you said everything was great.

[@AverytheCubanAmerican]

@@natewarecki You didn't, also I like using the rail pass. It's helpful for tourists

[@FeelingPeculiar]

@@natewarecki What are you saying??

[@natewarecki]

A Gregs I just thought it was funny that Narita only got a good rail pass

[@tckrmassa5967]

Sam chui, your the best aviation youtuber I've ever seen. Great job on the videos. I hope I can see you on future flights. Goodluck!!!

[@SamChui]

You're so kind. I am just very passionate when the camera is switched "on"!

[@kajiuman685]

@@SamChui hi sam chui

[@BayAreaTraveler]

Wow, what a flight! Such an festive atmosphere!

[@garciatunion]

wow! President delivering boxes.. Thats passion for your job

[@xhuynh23]

Gonzalo Garcia Tunon It is why ANA is my top fav Airline to fly with.

[@shakaib78]

I'm hitting the like button before even watching, REASON: Lightening speed to edit and upload! Hats Off ! Commitment Level Pro

[@SamChui]

I worked the whole night in Hawaii here to get this done. Time to sleep now!

[@shakaib78]

@@SamChui Appreciated 👏👏 Lots of Love

[@vidyashankaremani5138]

Very Glad that A380 is still living... I always fly A380, the quietest aircraft and the most comfortable.

[@RudolfGraspointner]

Still living? it is the most favorite among passengers and pilots. While production will stop in two years, the A380s are expected to fly another 20-30 years!

[@SurveyCaptainAkari]

@@RudolfGraspointner If there is a cargo version, it would live longer

[@k-viation4015]

They are planning on making on due to covid

[@nico5179]

I love ANA, the service and staff is just amazing, I would love to fly on their A380 one day. Fly high ANA, and keep on supporting that amazing aircraft that is the Airbus A380!

[@nycflyertravel]

The flying Honu looks amazing!!! I really wish more carriers took on the A380. So sad to see production cease.

[@rodrigovillegasmonsalve6417]

Sam your the only youtuber that really knows how to do aviation videos in conditions for us aviation geeks. THANKS!!!!!

[@TomGD]

This is one of the most legendary special liveries on an A380, I love to see this. Also AWESOME VIDEO!!! :D

[@nyashakchirume6334]

I definitely like the blue apron. It makes her stunning. Also, It's always good to see a brand new A-380 fly. Magnificent.

[@user-qu3zh2gb8o]

ANA gives us perfect service not only in business/first class but also in economy class😍😍 So please review in economy class some day👍👍 good work Sam👏👏🕺

[@rottweilertom]

Sam, this video was a home run. And your choice music was so awesome. Best video made yet!

[@christophershannon297]

The ANA A380 has coolest design ever and the coolest blue turtles ever on the brand new A380 design by airbus Congratulations 🎉

[@stephenkangethe9588]

I love that they ceo is not like some other CEO who would give a speech and live he stayed to hand out the gifts

[@rina4831]

さすがsam chuiさん。 一番に拝見させて貰いました。 great video 😆

[@zr1713]

WELL ITS CERTAINLY THE BEST FLIGHT IN THE PRESENT WORLD ! GO ANA 🇯🇵 🌺

[@svensaebel4576]

Thank you for all your wonderful contributions. Just flew two weeks ago from HNL to NRT and saw this bird parked in HNL probably for a test run. What I like the most about all your videos is your awesome positive spirit and smile. Thank you and safe travels!

[@kahanaandle1220]

スーツ氏もこの中に...

[@さいとうまさき-j6o]

おのださんも今夜乗るようです。

[@kahanaandle1220]

さいとうまさき エスタ取れたようですねw

[@azusa8388]

スーツくんは1階のエコノミーで 小野田さんはカウチ席でしたね

[@dipakpatel1716]

Kahana Andle fughjbct8

[@adelibrahim1647]

Congratulations to ANA and all aviation lovers around the globe for this iconic edition to the aviation world. Sam Chui you the best thanks for covering this historical event , i hope someday to be with you on one of your inaugural flights . Love you so much

[@fahdalghamdi3532]

This is my favourite A380 in the world

[@sandeshthane8012]

I have not seen so exciting peoples in any plane. ANA is just awesome. Really appreciate your hard work !!

[@jamsaddis9313]

Thank you so much for sharing all this with us. Keep up the great work! Have a great time in Hawaii.

[@k831]

I am Suzuki and special thanks to you at Honolulu airport with memorial photo and video comments at the opening events. We (me and my wife) had enjoyed first ANA A380 and fantastic memorial flight from Honolulu to Narita, with opening events, door close and open view, economy class front edge seats, cabin tours and etc. Now i am making my video to express the special impression of debut flight on my KZbin channel, but unfortunately Japanese comments and descriptions only. Finally special thanks to you with your very hard work and the exciting video of Narita to Honolulu review. Please make a good sleep.

[@calvinsmith7250]

I hope ANA take on more A380s! What a fabulous flight!

[@sanderwage1730]

15:42 the best Sam Chui song👍👍👍

[@rebeccawcleung]

Love ANA, love the cute safety video. Love the quiet, considerate Japanese passengers. Love the flowers in the buns of the flight attendants ( who are all smiling).... LOVE ANA... the best airline ever. Sometimes when I fly back to Hong Kong... I am willing to "endure" the shitty United domestic flight within US (becoz UA is the partner of ANA), then fly long haul on ANA to tokyo, then ANA again from tokyo to HK.. ANA is that good..so that I am willing to sacrifice and tolerate UA.

[@vikramparmar8093]

Well done Sam. As a newbie posting on your site, I am happy there exists a collegial relationship with the other aviation enthusiasts rather than an antagonistic relationship. All of you guys appear to genuinely like each other.

[@christianjomar1]

Omg they went with the Roll Royce aircraft engine 👍🏻👍🏻 awesome!

[@ダイスキラジオ]

私は東京在住の日本人です。英語の聞き取りの勉強にあなたの動画を利用しています。あなたの英語はとても聞き取りやすいです。内容も最高に楽しく、毎回わくわくしながら見ています。特に今回は日本の航空会社でしたので、余計におもしろくうれしかった。

[@mitchgordon8199]

Outstanding, Beautiful aircraft and people. Thanks!

[@AllenAcNguyen]

Congratulations for being the first passenger to fly the All Nippon Airways Airbus A380 "Flying Honu" first commercial inaugural flight, Mr. Sam Chui! ~Allen

[@LeeAviation]

I was waiting for this for so long! I was tracking you on Flightradar24!!! And what a fast turtle! 😂

[@srijansingh2085]

that gotta be the smoothest A380 touch down ever, massive respect for the airline and the pilots and sam great work buddy.

[@mustafareghefaoui3939]

I love how you posted this vlog 2 days after you traveled! the dedication is amazing! most aviation vlogs are 6 months after they've flown!

[@infiniteflightnzsim8011]

Love this Sam, keep going with the great reviews 👍🏻 👌

[@farmasinema]

All the stewardess look like a doll So cute !

[@mercybalones4670]

Awsome service also!

[@NGEKOGEKO]

お茶を急須で入れているとは。すごい。

[@orighomisandediare4990]

This is living. Flying with you is fun. Thank you for your dedication to showing the best of what the airlines have to offer.

[@박준서-k2f]

Thank you for making this high quality flight review video. After i saw your video i wanted to board on ANA A380. I'm so excited to wait for next video. please upload your next video as fast you can~~^^ I'm so exciting!!

[@jerichoadiwarna9473]

Thank you so much for the upload Sam! You’re the best!!

[@Ephrem58]

Always a good fan of you Sam, from Ethiopia, Thank you. ;-)

[@MileHigh_Aviation]

Awesome video

[@alex_theaviation2995]

Wow this is the most incredible video Sam im so happy. Hope you had a great first flight experience.

[@andrewcunnison6975]

How awesome. Love how everything is kept theme to the plane from the livery, in-flight entertainment and the amenities.

[@msc__vr46]

Hi Sam! I Really love your vlog and videos. I always watch your videos and i am inspired. Always love your vlog and videos. From Philippines

[@marines1944]

We love the A380............

[@Aw3some98]

I have been waiting for this video. Thanks Sam

[@SamChui]

Hope you like it!

[@stevehathaway4715]

I hope one of the Flying Honu-A380th will come to Europe aswell sometimes. Awesome aircraft and beautiful livery. Congratulation ANA, well done!

[@odeiraoloap]

It *may* be possible, but I feel like ANA would rather fly their 787s and maximise their Star Alliance partners (Lufthansa, Thai, Austrian) to bring people to Tokyo and then to Honolulu with the Honu.

[@yuutan1258]

ホヌのキャラクター可愛い💜❤💙💚💜❤💙💚💜❤💙💚💜❤💙💚💜❤💙💚💜❤💙💚💜❤💙💚

[@jionkubo3800]

I've seen a few videos on the inaugural flight of the ANA A380 done by some Japanese creators. However I find this to the the most informative and thorough. Thanks for the amazing review as always!

[@akaviation1874]

Sam！ Welcome to JAPAN 🇯🇵

[@napalm_vietcong_2109]

Airplane Channel Japan are you a nationalist?

[@無名-s8w]

@@napalm_vietcong_2109 Why are you saying such things?

[@napalm_vietcong_2109]

@@無名-s8w I thought because of the caps

[@adamhall5298]

The A380 truly is a marvel

[@sylviastephanies1868]

The safety instructions is just too cute! 😍

[@cyclonicleo]

Great job, Sam! Knowing ANA, they'll jump on the teething issues and sort them out quickly. I am rather envious and that livery is just amazing.

[@dwnk4691]

Sam, Good to see the Teletubbies still working in the safety video. I really like your channel! God bless.

[@lionel3635]

当初はワクワクして見た動画だったのに 久々に見たら涙でてくる😢 何でなんチクショー！ 始終みんなが笑顔ではじけてる♪ 悔しい、ただただ悔しい… 今はマスクでFull Smileが見えない＃＃ 一日も早くHONU三兄弟がホノルルの青い空 舞う日を願ってやみません。 解禁になった暁には HONU乗りまくってやる❣

[@coucoucoucou1485]

おのだ: ガイドブック スーツ: エッセイ とべちゃん: マニュアル …なんだなって思いましたが、 こちらは… エンターテイメント ですね。

[@rannelanacion3088]

?

[@FSHVTAGMMY]

はい

[@boraborasands1]

Excellent Video Sam, the A380 under a unique Honu mood and Hawaian souls

[@ulybrasil]

9:40 - I´m in love! So cute!

[@joeyf3256]

Sam Chui, thank you for your amazing content. This is one of your best reports so far. Well done.

[@luispedrogalvezsalazar2330]

Avión más lindo felicitaciones a la línea aérea ANA y que cosechen muchos éxitos.

[@thegoodboy6261]

Nice Sam! ANA A380 is soooo nice

[@BenetDoeringer]

Oh my god guys, Japanese flight is very quite, perfect time to do ASMR

[@bryanwu8148]

It’s always been a dream of mine to fly an inaugural flight, and hopefully I will one day! Yet again, another great review! :)

[@TonyPalacios17]

14:41 That was very funny!!! 😆 🤣😂

[@ravidubey7635]

Feel very excited on seeing your every video the main thing of your video is suspense u create and not boring how much length it have .u r only one whom I never shipped any video and never miss any video .lastly thanks to you.

[@Mets1969Mets1986]

What’s the song used?

[@johnnylaffy7757]

I was watching the flight on Flight Radar 24 and I was like I bet Sam is on that flight and here we are. Great job getting the video edited very quickly and uploading it for us to see.

[@Jay_Bee1]

Those ASMR sessions are the best haha

[@primeoption4824]

The safety video is so cute

[@jasoncannell4003]

Hi sam keep up the great work love your videos. One question where do you rate Etihad’s Business class

[@pandersonnike]

The Honu design is easily one of the coolest designs for any aircraft! It's very unique, fits the Hawaiian theme well, but still retains the Japanese feeling in the end.

[@IchimokuCloud]

Sam, you are a sweetheart. Love your videos. I really respect ANA turning the Skymark A380 lemons into Hawaiian lemonade! #anadiamond

[@michaeltodaychannel7471]

Wow, awesome montage. I like your vlogs, especially the ones with the A380. Greetings from Amsterdam.

[@annettenyakatura6610]

Thanks Sam I always fly A380 with Emlirates very nice

[@hilmarpaschold7512]

Got to catch a glimpse of a few departures from HNL during October 2022 visit What a plane

[@kennygoetz2010]

Congrats Sam, that would have been an amazing experience, I love all that you do, thank you :)

[@yojaz99]

Noticed the lights before you mentioned it... 😀

[@pushingBrix]

Great Video Sam👍 ANA CEO.... very impressive!

[@roverdover4449]

I didn't know there were so many hard-core flight enthusiasts. Makes sense I guess; it's a big world.

[@FlyersAviation]

Awesome Video Sam Chui! Great to see ANA now flying their A380 to Honolulu. Liked

[@joa_quinnn]

This is the best ANA A380 And your vids good job Mr.Sam!

[@abhisekhroy2912]

Its so amazing... ❤❤❤

[@daithilacha1]

Sam, This was a joy to watch from start to finish. Hands down you are best Airline reviewer on the Planet. Brought back happy memories of my first and only visit to Oahu in 1976 on a 747. That was a first for me too. Greetings from Ireland.

[@ChevyBM]

7:18 Is this girl just a random passenger? She is pretty!

[@RRSpartan406]

I usually don't comment on videos, but, you are the exception. You have shown me that first class is worth the extra cost. Thank you for the inspiration.

[@G-y_m]

First class is worth the extra 15k on average???? Most airlines are getting rid of it to focus on business and premium economy

[@rmd4209]

Awesome video Sam!!!

[@rohitgogoi3222]

7:25 wow she is pretty...

[@Astroboy108]

great video Sam, the quality of your flight reviews is getting better and better.

[@dikkalee467]

I really wanna ride it!! it will be so cool!

[@DUDEboy-t23]

Hey Sam Chui, I love your plane.Very awesome!

[@SonicAmbrose]

Sam wearing a flying Honu tattoo and playing with origami Honus can’t get more Kawaii than this😂

[@mannyzamora1692]

You always give great reviews and video