ANA feels the force with new Star Wars jet

ANA has unveiled its first Star Wars-themed aircraft, as part of its movie partnership with Disney.

The Japanese airline’s new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner rolled-out out of the Boeing factory on Saturday, adorned with a livery designed to resemble the famous Star Wars character, R2-D2.

This is the first of three Star Wars jets ANA will operate under the movie tie-up, and it was unveiled in an elaborate ceremony that featured R2-D2, C-3PO and Stormtroopers, with the official Star Wars theme tune playing as the hangar doors opened.

“Today the time has come to bring the ANA Star Wars project to life and we hope Star Wars fans across the world will be as excited about our R2-D2 ANA Jet as we are,” said Hideki Kunugi, ANA’s senior vice president for the Americas.

“At ANA we’re always looking for ways to improve the flying experience for our passengers, and what better way to start your trip to Asia than on a one-of-a-kind Star Wars plane?”

The R2-D2 Dreamliner will enter service on 18 October 2015, initially on the route between Tokyo and Vancouver. It will then be deployed to other destinations in ANA’s international network, including Seattle, San Jose, Munich, Paris, Brussels, Sydney, Beijing and Jakarta.

As well as having an exterior that resembles R2-D2, the interior of the 215-seat twin-aisle aircraft will feature themed in-flight decorations, such as headrest covers, paper napkins and cups. In addition, passengers will be able to watch all six of the current Star Wars films on ANA’s in-flight entertainment system – the first time the movies have been available via IFE.

Two additional Star Wars jets will join ANA’s fleet on the coming months. The first, a B767-300 painted to resemble BB-8 – a character from the new Star Wars movie, ‘The Force Awakens’ – will be rolled out on Japanese routes in November 2015, while the second, a B777-300ER featuring both R2-D2 and BB-8, will be deployed on international routes from March 2016.