Exactly one month ago, I wrote about coincidentally capturing the JAL Doraemon livery JA622J on the day of its retirement. Last Saturday, July 15th, I went to the Haneda International Terminal and spotted another Doraemon jet—JA610J. And once again, it was on the day of its retirement. What a coincidence!

This JA610J is known as the JAL Doraemon Jet No. 1. It was officially put into operation on September 22, 2016. On the JAL official website, there is even a short film documenting the production process. It records the entire journey from the initial manual application of the fuselage decals to the Doraemon jet finally taking to the skies.

JA610J had always been flying international routes from Narita Airport to China, so I never had a chance to see it. However, its special livery was scheduled for retirement. Before retiring, it flew a few final domestic Japanese routes, and I finally managed to catch it.

The photo I’m most satisfied with was taken around 6 PM. The sun was about to set, casting soft golden-yellow light. This is the best time of day when heat haze has essentially disappeared. <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/1/1/6/4458611.jpg?v=v42cce21dee8> Aviation Photo #4458611 Boeing 767-346/ER - Japan Airlines - JAL Airliners.net

I immediately uploaded it to airliners.net, and sure enough, it was accepted! This shot is arguably one of my best works this year. Feel free to click the link to view the large version.

The light was already getting a bit dim when it took off from Runway 16R. Luckily, it’s still relatively clear, so I’ve posted it here as well.

Additionally, here are a few other shots of mine that were recently accepted.

The following three photos were taken on the same day at the Haneda International Terminal Observation Deck: <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/9/7/9/4508979.jpg?v=v437d8887d5d> <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/1/5/1/4496151.jpg?v=v4faacf0047c> <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/9/4/3/4461349.jpg?v=v41e0bc9452c>

Taken at the Haneda Terminal 1 Observation Deck: <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/9/2/3/4473329.jpg?v=v453b1a2c041>

Taken at the Haneda Terminal 2 Observation Deck: <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/7/9/1/4474197.jpg?v=v4f08e2acdc3>