EVA Air

WestJet’s Disney planes retiring. But stand by for a new Hello Kitty livery from Eva Air

March 13, 2024Harriet Baskasliveriesairline liveries, Disney, EVA Air, Hello Kitty, WestJet

West Jet will retire the Walt Disney “Frozen” and “Magic Plane” liveries

This week we’ve been poking around for cool airplane liveries and learned from Calgary-based WestJet that the carrier is getting ready to retire the Walt Disney World Resort livery on the popular “Frozen”-themed plane and on the “Magic Plane” that features Sorcerer Mickey on the tail.

According to a WestJet spokesperon, “later this year,” the airline will be repainting these planes to match the existing WestJet fleet.

Good news for Hello Kitty livery fans

If you’re a Hello Kitty fan, there’s some good news.

Tawain-based Eva Air, which currently operates four Hello Kitty-themed jets – Travel Fun, Celebration Flight, Joyful Dream and Shining Star – says it is “working hard to create designs for our next generation Hello Kitty Jets” and will share news about those new special liveries when they’re ready to go.

In the meantime, the carrier says it’s using the four current Hello Kitty jets on flights to Clark (in the Philippines), Bali and Sapporo but not on specific schedules.

“We are using them just as we operate other aircraft in our fleet. A passenger on one of these routes could end up on an EVA Hello Kitty Jet or on another aircraft.”

Painted planes: a sea turtle for ANA; Bad Badtz-Maru for Eva Air

March 7, 2017Harriet BaskasliveriesAll Nippon Airways, ANA, Bad Badtz-Maru, EVA Air, Sanrio, Sea Turtles

Japan’s All Nippon Airways – ANA – is getting its first Airbus A380 and will introduce it on the Tokyo-Honolulu route starting spring 2019. When it does, the plane will be painted to look like an endangered Hawaiian green sea turtle (‘Honu’ in Hawaiian) – which is a symbol of luck and prosperity.

The “FLYING HONU” design was chosen from more than 2,000 contest submissions and the winner received a pair of round-trip business class tickets between Tokyo and Honolulu.

ANA first A380 design is released with a nickname "Flying Honu", symbolized good luck, endurance & long life! ⇒ https://t.co/0SPAwvjWyx pic.twitter.com/QS369GByy1

— All Nippon Airways (@FlyANA_official) March 6, 2017

In announcing the special livery, ANA said it will also be supporting activities in Hawaii to protect the Hawaiian green sea turtle and will introduce yet-to-be-finalized new passengers services for the plane and the route.

Meanwhile, earlier this month EVA Air launched a new “Travel Fun” Sanrio character-jet adorned with the character Bad Badtz-Maru that will be flying on the Taipei-Fukuoka and Taipei-Seoul routes.

The Airbus A330-300 is the first to fly internationally with a Bad Badtz-Maru livery and shows a vacation-ready Bad Badtz-Maru and some of his friends, along with hats, a camera, snacks and other items.

Souvenir Sunday: Hello Kitty on EVA AIR

June 21, 2015Harriet BaskasSouvenir Sunday, SouvenirsAirlines, EVA Air, Hello Kitty, toilet paper

During the party held to welcome EVA Air’s new Hello Kitty-themed jet at Houston’s Bush Intercontinental Airport on Friday, a wide variety of Hello Kitty-themed items were on display.

The food and toilet paper were designed to be used on board, but samples likely end up going home as souvenirs (which is probably why there are two rolls in the lavatories). But many other items are available for purchase only on Hello Kitty-themed flights.

Here are some of my favorites. (More to come..)

Hello Kitty barf bag

EVA’s Hello Kitty jet lands in Houston

June 20, 2015Harriet BaskasCelebrities, liveriesEVA Air, Hello Kitty, Hello Kitty jet, Houston, IAH Airport, Shining Star jet

With a great deal of fanfare and classic Hello Kitty cuteness, EVA Air’s brand-new, specially painted Boeing 777-300ER landed at Houston’s Bush Intercontinental Airport on Friday, June 19, 2015, with the carrier’s Chairman KW Chang serving as captain.

Named the Hello Kitty Shining Star Jet, the plane’s livery features Little Twin Stars Kiki and Lala, Hello Kitty and My Melody and is EVA Air’s seventh specially painted aircraft and its second using a long-range Boeing 777-300ER. The plane will fly on EVA Air’s new route between Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental and Taipei’s Taoyuan International Airport three times a week. A fourth flight, using a Boeing 777-300ER with standard EVA livery, will be added on July 8, 2015.

Here are a few pictures from the arrival event at IAH Airport. More pictures of the Hello Kitty-themed items on board – and available for purchase on board the airplane – tomorrow on Souvenir Sunday.

EVA AIR HELLO KITTY JET – in flight. Courtesy EVA AIR

More tomorrow…

(All photos by Harriet Baskas, except the plane in flight, which is courtesy EVA AIR)

Hello Kitty jets celebrate Chinese New Year

February 16, 2015Harriet BaskasHolidaysChinese New Year, EVA Air, Hello Kitty

Eva Air’s Hello Kitty Jets not only have Hello Kitty characters painted on the outside of the plane, just about every item inside the plane – from the headrest covers to the meals – has a Hello Kitty theme as well.

Right now the Hello Kitty jets are ready for the Chinese New Year. And to welcome in the Year of the Goat, the headrest covers, placemats and a variety of inflight service items now feature Hello Kitty wearing a set of goat horns.