Review of ANA flight from Tokyo to Manila in Economy

前書き INTRODUCTION

This is the third flight as part of a long trip originating from Canada to the Philippines. This flight is from Haneda to Manila on the B787-9 Dreamliner. ANA uses this longer version aircraft on this route instead of the shorter B787-8, which gets deployed on the Narita-Manila route. 

前回のフライトの到着時刻 Arrival Time of Previous Flight

トップ・ガン TOP GUN AIRSHOP

The brand of my collection of model aircraft are from the manufacturer Hogan Wings, however there weren't any ANA or JAL planes available in Canada at a hobby shop, whether it be at the airport or city. Therefore, while roaming around Akihabara, I found an interesting store called TOP GUN AIRSHOP, which was just about a 10 minute walk from the hotel. I didn't get any pics of the place but here is the website: https://www.top-gun.jp/ 
Their hours are only until 8:00PM everyday, and it took about 1.5 hours to get to Akihabara from the airport, check-in at the hotel and find the store itself. If the flight landed on time at 6:30PM, I most likely wouldn't have made it and it would have been impossible to go there the next day as it opens at 11AM and my flight to Manila departs at 9:45AM. Therefore, I am glad that the flight from Vancouver arrived early, otherwise I wouldn't have made it. 

At the time, the shop was running a promotion regarding getting 10% off the total purchase. And, because non-Japanese nationals are entitled to tax free shopping in Japan (my nationality is Canadian), that is an additional 8% off as well provided the minimum purchase amount is at least ¥5000. For 18% off the total purchase I found it to be an absolute great deal.

ANA B777-300ER (Registration# JA788A)

Japan Airlines B767-300ER (Registration# JA619J)

While waiting for the flight to board, I decided to go to the observation deck to try and get good shots of planes. However, it was raining and I only managed to get one shot before the rain got heavier. 

フライトに搭乗 BOARDING AND SETTLING IN

The flight was slightly delayed as boarding took a little longer than usual. The aircraft being used for this flight is a B787-9 Dreamliner, registration# JA890A. 

Cabin view during boarding. Judging by the number of people in their seats, the flight was almost completely full, with the majority of the passengers being Japanese.

This time, I got a window seat. My row wasn't to myself unfortunately, but the middle seat remained empty so I had a little more room to stretch out. 

Pushback was slightly a few minutes after the scheduled departure time. The taxi time to the runway also took a while.

Soon after, we are in the skies above Tokyo.

The seatbelt sign was turned off just less than 10 minutes after takeoff. Cabin Attendants then began preparations for the service while I explored the IFE. The content was pretty much the same as on the other flight from Vancouver. 

For the meal, I had reserved ANA's new Paid Exclusive Dining meal for ¥2,500 (about CAD$30) to see how good it really is and if it's worth it. This is the Japanese Meal.

Other than using real plates (instead of plastic ones), the taste wasn't really all that much different than a regular Economy Class meal. ANA's meals are already tasty enough in Economy, so I wouldn't really look into purchasing Paid Exclusive Dining unless the menu offerings are better than the regular Economy Class menu. Unfortunately, I had already purchased another Paid Exclusive Dining meal for my Narita-Seattle flight in just over 5 weeks. Let's see how that one will be like. After the meal service, I handed my Flight Logbook to one of the cabin attendants. 

フライトの最終段階 final stages of flight

Cabin Shot

Exploring flight map on the IFE

On final approach and landing into Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

It was a bit bumpy on the way down.

Taxiing to Terminal 3

If you look at this picture closely, you can see the remains of the Xiamen Airlines 737 that overshot the runway here in Manila.

Taxiing to Gate 111, which coincidentally was the same departure gate number in Tokyo. 

Parked at Gate 111

Seatbelt sign was turned off and passengers disembarked using the L1 and L2 doors. 

フライトログエントリ FLIGHT LOG ENTRY

After landing, my flight logbook was handed back to me all filled out (surnames blurred for privacy reasons)

This is the end of the 3-part series from Calgary to Manila. Now, to enjoy six days here in The Philippines before flying off to my next destination: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Thanks for reading this FR!