As it stands today, Japan Airlines holds 10 Airbus A350-1000 aircraft. Its first delivery, JA01WJ, launched in January 2024, and the airline has grown its fleet at a steady pace since.
The airline tapped the Airbus A350-1000 in October 2013 as a replacement for its Boeing 777-300ERs, and is now offering its flagship interiors and service onboard on its most premium and high-demand routes.
The order consists of 13 aircraft, which matches the number of 777-300ERs the airline owns. JAL is expecting one more delivery, JA11WJ, by March 2026, and the rest of the order to be complete in FY2027. The steady pace of deliveries the airline has enjoyed up until now will slow down significantly for the last few aircraft.
In the meantime, the flagship aircraft servies five destinations as of today:
- New York (JFK): Daily service on flights JL3, JL4, JL5, and JL6
- Dallas Fort Worth (DFW): Daily service on flights JL11 and JL12
- Los Angeles (LAX): Daily service on flights JL15 and JL16
- London (LHR): Daily service on flights JL43 and JL44
- Paris (CDG): Daily service on flights JL45 and JL46
Curiosity gets the best of many of us when thinking about the next destinations for these jets, particularly for those booking vacations and award redemptions in advance.
The short answer is that it’ll likely be either Chicago or San Francisco. These two cities were operated by the 777-300ER during its flagship years, and are the only remaining routes yet to see the A350-1000, while being a flagship 777 route in the past for the airline.
Let’s take a look at each route.
1. Tokyo HND – Chicago ORD (JL9, JL10)
Compared to the current five cities served by the A350s, Chicago has relatively less premium demand, which is a reason why the city has been left behind in getting an A350. Additionally, rival All Nippon Airways often uses its older Boeing 777s with outdated interiors for Chicago flights, while not using its flagship The Room business class seats daily. In short, Japan Airlines doesn’t see it as a priority to get its flagship aircraft to the city, and for good reason.
Secondly, given that Chicago is a large cargo hub, the airline would prefer to utilize its 777s as much as possible there, as the aircraft is better suited for the cargo operations compared to the A350s.
That said, Japan Airlines launched a second Chicago service in May 2025 (to Tokyo Narita), also operated by a Boeing 777-300ER. The airline is looking to capitalize on connecting passengers from American’s network (which Narita is better suited for), while adding more cargo capacity.
The airline could want to maximize cargo operations with two 777s daily and keep its next A350-1000 elsewhere. However, these aircraft are on their way out no matter what soon, and JAL cannot cling to their love for the 777s in Chicago forever.
The flip side would be, which I think makes relative sense, if the airline chooses to bring its next A350-1000 to Chicago, use it for its Haneda flights, and keep the 777 for its Narita flights, so it can still capitalize on Chicago’s massive cargo demand to an extent. Given the airline’s decision to turn Chicago into a double daily 777 operation just this past May, I wouldn’t be surprised if this is the case.
2. Tokyo HND – San Francisco SFO (JL1, JL2)
San Fransico is operated by the Boeing 777 during peak seasons, but gets downgraded to a Boeing 787 during off-peak times. This year, flights JL1 and JL2 were flown by a 777-300ER between Mar. 1 and Oct. 25.
Last winter, as well as this winter, the flights are flown by either a Boeing 787-8 or a 787-9. A switch to an A350 would be a big capacity increase.
However, given that it used to be a daily 777 flight, the airline likely knows that the city has potential for a year-round flagship service. Since San Francisco has less of an incentive for the airline to maximize on cargo, the A350-1000 would make sense on that front.
Additionally, this route does have the benefit of the flagship flight numbers JL1 and JL2.
Bottom Line
Both of these routes will eventually get the A350-1000s, as the 777s are on their way out. If I just had to guess, I’d say Chicago because of the recent addition of a new daily route with a 777-300ER and the American Airlines connections out of ORD.
By the end of FY2027, which is March 2028 in Japan, Airbus and Japan Airlines will have completed the A350-1000 order. Moving forward, the airline will receive A350-900 aircraft configured for international operations to serve more destinations in North America and Asia.
In the meantime, those looking to fly the new A350-1000 should stick with the current routes operated by the aircraft, as the next three deliveries look like they will take a long time.
Featured image by the author.
