JAL A350-1000 Business Class

I had an event to attend in America that month. Since I always enjoy a trip to Japan, a Japanese airline was near the top of my list.

This time, I had my eye on Japan Airlines' new Airbus A350-1000. Even with 3 flights and more than 28 hours of travel, I was up for it. 😄😂

I'd originally planned to bring the children and have another stopover in Japan on the way home. Unfortunately, the final destination changed from Hawaii to Miami. After working out the travel time, it seemed too long for little ones—even I was feeling a bit daunted. So the children stayed home this time.

Another reason I chose to fly through Japan was the chance to stop by DisneySea. Fantasy Springs was just about to open, and I wanted to have a look around first and bring home some presents for the children. They weren't with me this time, but Dad was still on present-buying duty. 😄

When I travelled in June 2024, JAL's A350-1000 flew from Haneda to JFK and Dallas (DFW). I was heading to DFW. At the time, just one aircraft served that route, flying every other day, so I had to choose my dates carefully.

The aircraft was still very new. It had only started serving the DFW route in April 2024, while JFK had received it in January of the same year. When I first looked into it, even Economy and Premium Economy looked comfortable to me—never mind Business and First Class. 😁

The seat I'd come to try

I booked Business Class this time because the journey involved several flights. The layout reminded me of Qatar's Qsuite, but I liked the Asian touches JAL had added. The lamp, for example, was beautifully designed.

The seat reclined fully flat (180 degrees). With the sliding door closed, it felt almost like a private room.

There was quite a lot of storage for small items, along with wireless phone charging and USB-C and USB-A ports. The space below the screen and the footwell were both very deep.

I'd been looking forward to trying these speakers

I was especially keen to try the speakers built into the headrest. I thought the sound was decent. They're a handy option if you don't want to wear headphones for hours.

The screen was 4K and came with a remote, though I found it easier to use the touchscreen directly.

Meals along the way

There was quite a range of food to choose from. I won't go into all the details, but here are some photos from the flight.

I thought I'd share the experience in case you're considering this flight for a future trip.