On March 21, 2024, JAL held a board meeting at which it announced plans to order 42 aircraft including 21 Airbus A350-900s, 11 A321neos, and 10 Boeing 787-9s. The A321neos will be the first narrowbody Airbus aircraft to be operated by the airline.
While JAL already operates 15 A350-900s, the airline plans to use 20 of the 21 ordered A350-900s on international flights. The remaining A350-900 will be used to replace JA13XJ, which was lost in a tragic accident at Tokyo Haneda Airport at the beginning of this year. JAL expects to receive the replacement domestic A350-900 in FY2025 (April 1, 2025, through March 31, 2026).
The international airframes are expected to be delivered over approximately six years, starting from FY2027.
It is unclear what cabin configuration the international A350-900s will be in, although they will likely feature the new cabins first introduced on the recently delivered A350-1000s. The domestic A350-900 will likely be in the same configuration as JA13XJ was, i.e., with 369 seats including 12 in first, 94 in Class J, and 263 in economy class.
Combined with JAL’s 13 A350-1000s (2 delivered + 11 more on order) and 15 A350-900s, JAL will operate a fleet of 49 A350 aircraft.
The 11 A321neos are expected to start replacing some of the airline’s aging 767-300ERs on domestic routes, primarily from Haneda Airport. They are expected to start entering JAL’s fleet in FY2028, approximately two years after the airline starts replacing some of its older 737-800s with 737 MAX 8s, of which it has 21 on order.
The A321neo will be the first narrowbody Airbus type to enter JAL’s fleet.
Lastly, JAL will also grow what is already one of the largest 787 fleets in the world by another 10 airframes. Boeing is expected to start delivering the additional 787-9s, which will be used on international flights, in FY2027.
According to JAL’s President Akasaka Yuji, a significant portion of the 787-9s will join ZIPAIR, JAL’s low-cost subsidiary, which currently operates eight of the shorter 787-8s and is expected to receive two more. However, some of the aircraft are also expected to join JAL’s 55-airframes strong 787 fleet, which currently includes 4 domestic 787-8s, 19 international 787-8s, and 22 international 787-9s.
First published on March 21, 2024. Updated on March 22, 2024, to include information about ZIPAIR receiving a portion of the 787-9s.
