(FS24) Fly with me on a 787 in a short 1hr flight...in Japan

[P_7878]

With the availability of long-haul airplanes in our SIM (such as the payware B777 and A350, or even the default 747-8 and 787-10), simmers often might say, yours truly included, "Oh well...I don't have the patience or time to fly such airliners for 10+ hrs...", which is true enough with all the other non-pilot (and life-sustaining...🙂...) daily obligations that we might otherwise have...alongside this imaginary aviator careers of ours here. However, if one is an airliner enthusiast (yours truly very much so...🙂...), that should not be an excuse. First of all, in our virtual world, we are self-authorized to fly any range of flight we wish without the worry of any non-compliant enforcement actions and pilotage suspensions...🙂...from those regulatory (overseeing) authorities such as FAA (or EASA) ...🙂...Secondly, there are indeed numerous RW flights of widebody aircraft that are actually short-haul (e.g., of 1 or 2 hr durations). Can you believe, as I just found out, that the shortest 787 flight in the world, is the service between Curaçao and Bonaire in the Caribbean Sea (with a direct flight distance of only 45 miles)? TUI Netherlands offers a 787 flight between Curaçao (CUR) to Bonaire (BON) that departs from Curaçao at 18:05 and arrives at Bonaire Airport at 19:15, actually lasting 1hr and 10mins. 

Today, I was reading a bit about how the Japanese carriers (notably JAL and ANA) have mastered the art (and science) of profitably using widebody aircraft (such as the B787 and A350) in their domestic sector. For example, the 787-9 can fly non-stop for about 9,000 miles, and the 350-900 can fly non-stop for over 11,000 miles. Yet, JAL is currently using the 350-900 in domestic service between e.g., Tokyo and Fukuoka, over a flight distance of only about 500 miles (this was JAL's first ever A359 domestic service). In fact, on FlightAware, I am seeing that, for this Sunday, 4 scheduled JAL A359 flights in the AM alone, between these 2 cities, at 6.25am, 8:00am, 10:00am, 11:05am (local/JST times). So, imagine this: An 11,000 miles capable (widebody) airplane flying routinely on just a 500 miles trip...! 

Likewise, ANA, the launch customer of 787 and the world's largest operator of the type (the first sighting of an ANA 787 near the Everett factory had given me my username here...🙂...) also flies 787s between the same two cities with many daily flights (e.g., an ANA 787-10 is scheduled to depart from Tokyo at 11:30am Sunday destined for Fukuoka). 

So, I wonder...should JAL/ANA be (instead) not using the (ubiquitous) narrow-bodies such as the B737 and A320 on such routes...or even the ATRs and Dash 8s ...🙂...? What are we missing...? First of all, the Japanese carriers are no stranger to using widebodies (such as the 747 and 777) over such short-haul (domestic) routes. More recently, these widebodies have been simply replaced by ultra-modern, more fuel efficient, and quieter widebodies.

It's common sense that, for long distances, large airplanes are typically more efficient due to their capacity and fuel economy while, for small regional distances, small airplanes are more efficient. So, JAL and ANA are clearly known to buck this trend...! But how...? The answer lies in factors that are typical in Japan (and possibly in other parts of the world too). These Japanese airlines utilize widebody aircraft on domestic routes primarily due to high passenger demand on certain routes, the limited number of airport slots and associated costs, the ability to maximize capacity (and revenue), and potentially offer premium services like first or business class seating and inflight entertainment (options that cannot be offered in a narrowbody  aircraft), thereby allowing them to charge higher fares. 

On a closer look, the airlines calculate their (unit) operating cost (referred to as "DOC = Direct Operating Cost") as follows: DOC = Financial Cost (such as for acquisition of a/c) + Crew Cost + Charges and Fees (such as for airport slot) + Maintenance Cost (such as for airframe and engines) + Fuel Cost. I found that the DOC analysis can quickly become rather complex...🙂...! However, put it simply, assuming the total cost of use of a certain aircraft over a given route to remain same, the profitability comes down to the number of passengers that the airline is able to pack into that aircraft for a given route (aka the load-factor). This is where the widebodies (with much larger capacities) can shine in dense and high-demand routes.

The DOC for any given airliner plotted as a function of passenger number looks (approximately) as shown in my screenshot #13 below. This image #13, btw, is my demarcation of the two phases of my flight today...🙂...Shot #s 1-12 are for takeoff to cruise, and shot #s 14-20 are for descent and touchdown, with shot #14 (cockpit) ND display specifically showing that I've just reached the magical (T/D) point and my 787 is about to equally magically (and automatically) start its descent under full (LNAV/VNAV) FMC guidance....now where is that Speed Brake...🙂...?

In my screenshot #13, the 787-8 (red line) and 787-9 (green line) plots show how the DOC is decreasing as the no. of pax is increasing. It's also seen how the 787-9 (a much larger airplane than the 787-8), with its higher capacity, can actually outcompete the smaller 787-8 at higher passenger numbers. That's the reason ANA is able to (profitably) operate (RW) short-haul flights daily with their 787-9s (and 787-10s). The ANA 787-10 has 28 seats in Premium class and 400 in Economy class and the Economy seats have 13.3-inch personal monitor (not am amenity you might expect on a regular short-haul A320 or a B737).

So, please come along with me as I fly you on this (virtual) 787-10 (in the favorite (and only one available) livery of my local airline...🙂...UNITED; btw, this is exactly the same 787 (both model and livery) that you see taxiing (majestically) on the ground every time you launch your MSFS2024). I've chosen a short 1hr 20min (~400 miles) route between Tokyo (Haneda/HND) and Hiroshima/HIJ, landing on Hiroshima's ILS Runway 10. This route, though short, indeed packs a punch in terms of (mountainous) scenery en-route (see images below), including the prominent appearance of Mount Fuji, soon after I was airborne and climbing southward (the SimBrief Flight Plan coincidentally took me rather close to this peak, as it passed by on my port side window...see shots...).

I know you've choices of travel here but forced to fly with me on this 787....🙂...e.g., you could take the Bullet Train from Tokyo to Hiroshima which will cost you US ~$200 and take ~4hrs. For comparison, I just visited the 5-star ANA airline website and tested booking an imaginary...🙂...787 flight (in advance, a month from today, on Apr. 8), which would cost me only $110 in Economy (and $350 in Premium) class. So, the choice is rather clear for me as I travel for just over an hour in the 787 here while I get to see Mount Fuji...while sipping a beverage of my choice in the Premium class...🙂...and maybe also enjoying that new "Paddington in Peru" film, I've been meaning to see...Oh well...

I hope you enjoy this collection of Boeing 787-10 images from my trip today.

And happy flying with your own SIM of choice...as long as you're having fun...that's all that matters. I certainly did have fun today with this flight (and exploring this topic). Thanks for viewing...!

[Alaska738]

I can't see the screenshots.

[P_7878]

1 hour ago, Alaska738 said:

I can't see the screenshots.

Will:

Appreciated letting me know...I got new links to my images and reposted separately.

Hope the images are visible this time. Thanks.

[pmplayer]

Me too, only can see one shot...??

cheers 🙂

[Alaska738]

15 hours ago, P_7878 said:

Will:

Appreciated letting me know...I got new links to my images and reposted separately.

Hope the images are visible this time. Thanks.

Its the same. I would advise you to upload on imgBB 😉 

 

[P_7878]

1 hour ago, Alaska738 said:

Its the same. I would advise you to upload on imgBB 😉 

 

Hi Will:

This post…I could not edit. So, please consider this one gone, but I have since reposted my images via a separate post.
It appears that now pmplayer and Bernd both are able to view those images on my other post. Could you please check?

BTW, I found that my issue seems to be commonly reported on-line with multiple possible root causes, but apparently no one has narrowed down the cause. It seems to fix itself for some. Let me see.

Thanks.

[Alaska738]

5 hours ago, P_7878 said:

Hi Will:

This post…I could not edit. So, please consider this one gone, but I have since reposted my images via a separate post.
It appears that now pmplayer and Bernd both are able to view those images on my other post. Could you please check?

BTW, I found that my issue seems to be commonly reported on-line with multiple possible root causes, but apparently no one has narrowed down the cause. It seems to fix itself for some. Let me see.

Thanks.

Checked 😉