Three new planes decorated with characters from the popular Pokémon (Pocket Monster) television series entered the fleet of All Nippon Airways in late June. ANA had asked elementary schoolchildren to send in designs featuring Pokémon characters.

The winning entry was submitted by Shota Sato, a fifth grader attending Kohokudai Nishi Elementary School in Abiko, Chiba Prefecture. Shota's design was chosen from about 40,000 that the airline received.

Pokémon was originally developed in 1996 as a Nintendo video game. It details the journey of a young boy named Ash (Satoshi in the Japanese version) who encounters more than 150 Pocket Monsters, including Pikachu. The TV series has become a big hit in Japan and is now also aired in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the United States.

At the ceremony to inaugurate the Pokémon planes on June 21, Shota signed his name on the aircraft's door. In explaining how he chose his design, he said, "I wanted to give the Pokémon that usually live at sea a chance to experience the thrill of flying in the sky. I can't believe that planes carrying my design are really going to fly."

The new Pokémon jets are now being used on ANA's domestic routes linking 30 cities, including Tokyo, Osaka, and Sapporo.

Photo: A jumbo jet decorated with a giant image of Pikachu.(All Nippon Airways)
(©Nintendo, CREATURES, GAMEFREEK, TV TOKYO, SHO-PRO, JR KIKAKU)