Japanese carrier ANA has removed the Airbus A380 from its schedule until at least July. Until last week, the giant of the skies had been down to return to Honolulu from the start of the IATA summer timetable on March 27th. The type is now not present in ANA's regular flight schedule until July, though its return could be further delayed or moved forwards.

While ANA hasn't operated scheduled flights with the giant of the skies for most of the pandemic, that doesn't mean it hasn't been flying the mighty Airbus A380. The airline has been operating regular charter "flights to nowhere" around Japan.

The A380's return has been delayed

According to schedule data from aviation experts Cirium, ANA has postponed the Airbus A380's return. Last week the aircraft was listed as returning to Honolulu flights with the arrival of the IATA summer timetable. This meant that seven rotations were planned for March, with ten weekly services planned for the following months.

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The Airbus A380 had been scheduled to return in late March. Photo: Philippe Masclet - Master Films - Airbus

Now, zero Airbus A380 flights are planned across the coming months. Until July, the giant of the skies has been removed from ANA's flight schedule. According to the airline's booking engine, the giant of the skies will now return to Honolulu flights ten times a week from July 1st.

It is possible that ANA could push the A380's return forward or backward. Passengers booking a flight specifically to fly the A380 should consider this.

Ka La's debut?

The resumption of ANA's Airbus A380 schedule would likely see the debut of its youngest Airbus A380 - its Sunset Orange liveried giant named Ka La. The aircraft's delivery was anything but standard. The plane is 2.37 years old, according to data from ch-aviation.com, yet it has never operated a scheduled flight. The jet first flew on October 10th, 2019.

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The Airbus A380's return would allow the airline's newest giant to carry its first passengers. Photo: Lindner Fotografie - Airbus

JA383A was due to be delivered to ANA in the first half of 2020, though the airline postponed the delivery due to the pandemic. ANA eventually took delivery of the jet on paper on October 30th, 2020. However, it remained in the care of Airbus. FlightRadar24.com's data shows that the aircraft didn't fly to Japan until October 15th and has only flown once since its arrival.

When did ANA's A380s last fly to Honolulu?

Every other carrier that has brought the Airbus A380 back into service has then become committed to its immediate operation. This is part of the reason why British Airways didn't back down on its Airbus A380 return amid Omicron. ANA, however, took a slightly different approach. The Japanese carrier has flown the A380 to Honolulu since the start of the pandemic, though not regularly.

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The aircraft returned to scheduled flights in August, carrying passengers to and from Honolulu. Bizarrely, just two rotations were ever planned before the planes went back into semi-storage.

Until Japan relaxes its strict overseas travel rules, the giant's wings will likely remain clipped.

When do you think ANA will resume regular Airbus A380 flights? Let us know what you think and why in the comments!