Originally published in Jetstream Magazine by Winston Shek.

In the winter of 1992, ANA (figuratively) handed the paintbrush to the public. The airline held a nationwide contest asking elementary and middle schoolers to design a livery for one of its new Boeing 747-400s, celebrating its 500 millionth passenger. The winner wasn't a seasoned artist or aviation buff, but a 12-year-old sixth grader, Yukie Ogaki. Her playful whale-themed design with a sea of fish would soon wrap itself around the largest passenger aircraft in ANA's fleet. 

The result, JA8963, nicknamed the "Marine Jumbo," became an icon of the skies and a symbol of imagination brought to life at 35,000 feet. The design was so popular that smaller cities and airports in Japan protested that they could not receive the livery. As a result, a Boeing 767-300 (JA8579) was painted in the same livery as "Marine Jumbo Jr."

That moment wasn't a one-off. It marked the beginning of ANA's long-running love affair with special liveries: aircraft that tell stories and celebrate Japanese culture. From sea turtles and droids to Olympic tributes and Pokémon characters, ANA has turned its fleet into a gallery of flying art.

In 1996, following the success of its Marine Jumbo livery, ANA unveiled a livery with Snoopy and his pals in winter gear on a Boeing 747-400. It commemorated the 25th anniversary of ANA's Hokkaido Ski Tour. The Japanese airline promoted Snoopy as the tour's mascot in commercials and advertising. It primarily featured the livery on flights to snowy Hokkaido in the winter of 1996 and the winter of 1997.

ANA's Pokémon Era

In 1998, ANA kick-started an iconic partnership with Pokémon, a franchise that has become inseparable from Japanese culture. The franchise takes place in a shared universe in which humans co-exist with creatures known as Pokémon, a large variety of species endowed with special powers. Pokémon took the world by storm in 1996 with the release of Pokémon Red and Green on the Game Boy. The release of the manga "Pokémon: Pocket Monsters" soon followed, as well as a popular animated show. 

Coinciding with the release of "Pokémon: The First Movie," ANA revealed a Boeing 747-400D, JA8965, and a Boeing 767-300, JA8569, with the title "Pocket Monsters" stamped on the side of the fuselage. A collection of characters, including the instantly recognizable bright yellow Pikachu, adorned the fuselage and tail section. The engines had Poké Balls. Onboard, paper cups and headrests featured Pokémon themes. The airline also distributed limited edition "gold" Pokémon boarding passes and exclusive Pokémon trading cards.

The design was so popular that a second Boeing 767-300, JA8578, was painted in the same livery several weeks later. This batch of "1998 liveries" lasted until 2000.

In February 1999, ANA introduced a Pokémon livery specifically for North American routes to strengthen its international marketing. Dubbed the "U.S. version" by the airline, this Boeing 747-400, JA8962, diverged from past iterations, featuring English text and displaying the ANA logo on the vertical stabilizer. Its maiden voyage was to New York, marking All Nippon's first international special livery. This livery remained operational until 2006, serving Southeast Asian trunk routes (Hong Kong, Bangkok, etc.) as well as long-haul flights to Europe and North America.

Similar to the design contest for "Marine Jumbo", All Nippon Airways announced a design contest for a new Pokémon jet livery in 1999, coinciding with the ironically-named release of "Pokémon Movie 2000." This competition was exclusively open to elementary school students. The winning entry featured a light blue color scheme with different characters from the original livery, while still featuring iconic Pikachu. It was adorned on a Boeing 747-400, JA8964, and two Boeing 767-300s (JA8288 and JA8357) from July 1999 on domestic trips. The final aircraft with this livery remained in operation until 2007.

In May 2004, "Pikachu Jumbo" was introduced on a Boeing 747-400D (JA8957). This design deviated from past liveries, featuring an all-yellow fuselage with all the main Pokémon characters from the movies up until 2004. Pikachu smiles happily on the tail with the text: Pokémon. This livery was featured on domestic routes until its retirement in 2013. 

Later that year, in December 2004, ANA unveiled the "Ohana Jumbo," another Boeing 747-400D (JA8956). The livery showcased popular Pokémon such as Pikachu and Pichu alongside flower-themed Pokémon, including Beautifly, Bellossom, and Roselia. The design was selected through a livery contest commemorating the opening of Haneda Airport's Terminal 2. The aircraft presented a yellow tail, a light blue upper fuselage, and a floral pattern along the lower half. It flew domestic routes until its retirement in 2012.

In 2011, All Nippon Airways announced a design contest for children to pick from three designs for its fourth generation of Pokémon liveries, specifically on its Boeing 777-300, JA754A. This represented a new aircraft type for its Pokémon liveries, reflective of the Boeing 747s that were approaching retirement. Unfortunately, just two days before voting was scheduled to start, a deadly 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami struck Japan, causing the airline to cancel the vote. 

Instead, ANA named the jet "Peace Jet" after the quake and selected a design that expressed a wish for a world filled with happiness and peace. Peace Jet featured characters from the game "Pokémon Black and White," with characters holding up the peace sign over a light blue sky. The livery was deployed to service in July, timed with the release of two new Pokémon movies. The jet was repainted in 2016, when the licensing agreement between All Nippon Airways and Nintendo expired. 

No aircraft were painted in Pokémon liveries between 2016 and 2020. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Pokémon executives announced an initiative, Pikachu Air Adventures, to aid in the financial recovery of the aviation industry. As part of this program, airlines were permitted to decorate aircraft with Pokémon liveries free of licensing fees and with paint fees covered by Pokémon, encouraging carriers worldwide to "fill the skies with Pokémon jets." 

Many airlines, such as Scoot and China Airlines, took advantage of this program during the pandemic, marking a transition from ANA being the sole carrier with a Pokémon livery. 

After a seven-year hiatus, All Nippon Airways unveiled "Pikachu Jet" on a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, JA894A. The jet features Sky High Pokémon Rayquaza across the entire fuselage: Charizard, Latias, Latios, Vivillon, and other flying Pokémon from all over the Pokémon world move together with Pikachu toward the shining rays of hope and endless possibilities of an interconnected world. It also marks the first international Pokémon jet in 17 years. 

This specific aircraft can be spotted on a wide range of flights. To check where it can be spotted, it is best to consult Flightradar24 or the ANA website to see where it could operate. 

All Nippon Airways followed up the Pikachu Jet with "Eevee Jet" on a Boeing 777-300ER (JA784A) in September 2023. This specific aircraft depicts the Pokémon Eevee and all of its evolved forms following Pokémon to the nose cone of the aircraft. This specific plane is found on flights to London, Chicago, New York, and San Francisco. Both the Pikachu Jet and Eevee Jet will be repainted in 2028 to base colors. 

ANA's modern-day collaboration with Pokémon extends beyond the livery. Commonly, flights with the ANA special livery feature special Pokémon-themed headrest covers and cups with ANA cabin crew wearing Pokémon-themed attire. Even ANA's safety video is Pokémon themed!

Track_ANA_Special_Liveries

ANA & Japanese Culture

Japan is synonymous with the advent of anime and animation. Other than Pokémon, All Nippon Airways launched a collaboration with the popular Japanese anime and manga Demon Slayer in late 2021. Demon Slayer is a Japanese manga series that tells the story of a teenager who wants to become a demon slayer after his family was killed and his sister was turned into a demon.

It revealed two different Boeing 767-300ERs within the span of two months in early 2022. The first livery (JA616A) features the primary cast of the anime on a white fuselage, while the second livery (JA608A) Demon Slayer: "Kimetsu no Yaiba," showcases the characters from the specific Kimetsu no Yaiba story. 

A third Demon Slayer livery on a 777-200ER (JA745A) illustrates characters Tanjiro, Rengoku, and Tengen in a dynamic pose, deviating from the style of the two Boeing 767-300ER liveries. Unfortunately, ANA repainted all of its Demon Slayer liveries in 2024. 

In 2010, All Nippon Airways announced a collaboration with the popular animated TV series Gundam with the "Gundam Jet." It celebrated the 30-year anniversary of Gundam model robot kits. On certain flights, ANA sold these model humanoid robots. The livery (JA755A) features stickers of the Gundam robots and was repainted in 2012. 

Star Wars

In April 2015, ANA announced a licensing agreement with the Walt Disney Company – known as the Star Wars Project – paving the way for the first-ever Star Wars livery. In late October, a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner (JA873A) fresh out of the Charleston factory was set to bear a livery for the beloved and iconic robot droid: R2-D2. The livery featured a blue and grey R2-D2 droid nose cone in the front half and the iconic Star Wars billboard font in the back half, perfectly meshing the ANA livery.

In a statement, Kayleen Walters, Vice President, Marketing for Lucasfilm Ltd, stated, "We're proud of the innovative R2-D2 design, and we look forward to witnessing the first-ever flight of a passenger aircraft featuring a Star Wars character. We're confident that Star Wars fans around the world will absolutely love this design." 

In July 2015, All Nippon Airways announced two new liveries to promote the first Star Wars movie to be released in 10 years. One of the liveries was a Boeing 777-300ER (JA789A) featuring a new droid for the new movie trilogy: BB-8. This livery featured a similar droid-like design to the R2-D2 plane with a droid nose and orange droid patterns throughout the fuselage. Due to financial pressure from the COVID-19 pandemic, this ANA Boeing 777-300ER was withdrawn from service in 2022, despite being only 12 years old. It commonly flew internationally. 

An ANA Boeing 767-300ER (JA604A) was also painted to bear the likeness of R2-D2 on one side and BB-8 on the other side. This livery featured a cheatline of orange on one side with a sticker of the BB-8 droid, and a cheatline of blue on one side with a sticker of the R2-D2 droid. This aircraft premiered in November 2015 and primarily flew domestically within Japan until it was repainted in March 2019.

In March 2016, ANA unveiled its final Star Wars livery featuring the iconic C-3PO on a Boeing 777-200ER (JA743A), the famous gold droid in the original Star Wars trilogy. It emblazons an all-yellow fuselage with droid emblems and patterns throughout. Similarly, this aircraft is only featured on domestic flights. 

All ANA Star Wars planes also display interior decorations, such as headrest covers, paper napkins, and cups featuring Star Wars characters. Both the Star Wars Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner and Boeing 777-300ER commonly flew internationally, expanding their promotional international reach. 

Unfortunately, in 2025, ANA announced the drawdown and conclusion of its partnership with Star Wars. In August, ANA flew the final passenger flight with the R2-D2 livery to Washington Dulles, before being repainted. Its C-3PO livery is scheduled for repaint in January 2026. 

Flying Honu

As part of a restructuring agreement for bankrupt Skymark Airlines in 2016, All Nippon Airways announced it would take delivery of three Airbus A380s starting in 2019. In October 2016, ANA announced a public design contest for its Airbus A380 livery to highlight the aircraft's exclusive service to Honolulu. with the winner receiving free business class tickets to Honolulu. 

Amid more than 2,000 entries, ANA revealed the winning design known as "Sea Turtle Family," which features the Hawaiian green sea turtle, a symbol of good luck and prosperity in Hawaii. 

Known as "Honu" in the Hawaiian language, the green sea turtle is considered a sacred creature. ANA selected "Flying Honu" as its nickname, launching an initiative to protect the Hawaiian green sea turtle, which is listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as a wild animal in danger of extinction.

The design features a friendly, smiling parent Honu with two smaller Honu turtles following it. There are three primary variations of Flying Honu: Lani, a blue turtle family; Kai, a green turtle family; and Lā, an orange turtle family. 

In an industry often defined by uniformity, ANA reminds the world that flying can still be art. Each special livery is more than just paint on a fuselage; rather, it is a celebration of the joy of flying and the magic that connects people across the skies.

What Can You Catch Now?

Track ANA's special liveries currently flying through the interactive element below.

Track_ANA_Special_Liveries