ZIPAIR 787-8 Seat Selection Guide (2026)
✈️ Quick Verdict
Aircraft: Boeing 787-8 — 290 seats: 18 Full Flat, 272 Standard economy
Layout: Full Flat 1-2-1 (A | D G | K), rows 1–5 · economy 3-3-3 (A B C | D E G | H J K), rows 18–36 and 45–57
Version lottery: No — every ZIPAIR jet is a 787-8 in this layout. The 787-9 is not due before late 2027.
Best seats: Full Flat 1A, 1K, then 3A, 3K, 4A, 4K · economy 46B, 46J (exit legroom) · couples 56A + 56C or 56H + 56K
Seats to avoid: 46A, 46K (exit row, no window, door in the legroom) · Full Flat row 5 (lavatories behind)
Entertainment: No seatback screens; a small library streams to your own device · Wi-Fi: free Starlink
Power: universal socket and USB-A at every seat · Included: the seat and 7 kg of carry-on. Everything else is extra.
The catch: a business-class bed, a low-cost bill
ZIPAIR is Japan Airlines’ low-cost long-haul airline, and its headline product is remarkable: a lie-flat seat with direct aisle access, sold for a fraction of what a full-service airline charges for business class between Tokyo and North America. It flies from Tokyo Narita to Honolulu, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Vancouver and Houston, with San Jose in the peak seasons, and across Asia.
The catch is everything around the seat. The base fare buys the seat and 7 kg of carry-on. Meals, checked bags, blankets, amenity kits, seat selection and even bottled water are all paid extras, and that applies in Full Flat too. A Full Flat ticket is a bed, not a business-class service. Budget for the bed, a meal or two and a bag before comparing prices with a full-service airline.
In economy, the trap is in the seats ZIPAIR charges most for. The extra-legroom rows sit in a higher-priced seat category, and two of them, 46A and 46K, have no usable window and an exit door curving into the legroom. Seat selection is paid once: change your mind and you pay again. So pick carefully the first time.
Full Flat (rows 1–5)
18 seats in a 1-2-1 reverse herringbone, every one with direct aisle access. Window seats face the windows; the centre pair angles in toward each other. The seat is about 20in wide with a bed of nearly two metres. Row 1 has only two seats, 1A and 1K, because a storage unit takes the centre. There are no seatback screens even here: bring a tablet, and use the free Wi-Fi.
Best Full Flat seats
- 1A, 1K — the front row has no centre seats, so it is the most private corner of the cabin.
- 3A, 3K, 4A, 4K — window seats facing the glass, mid-cabin, away from the lavatories.
- 2D + 2G, 3D + 3G — the centre pairs for two travelling together.
Full Flat seats to avoid
- Row 5 (5A, 5D, 5G, 5K) — the lavatory block at door 2 is directly behind. A curtain keeps most of the queue out, but this is the noisiest row in the cabin.
Economy (rows 18–57)
272 Recaro seats in 3-3-3 at about 31in of pitch and about 17in wide — standard long-haul economy. The letters skip F: A B C | D E G | H J K. The cabin is split by door 3 into a forward section (rows 18–36) and a rear section (rows 45–57); rows 37 to 44 do not exist. Row 18 and row 36 have no centre seats, and row 45 has centre seats only.
The extra-legroom seats sit behind the two doors: row 18 and 19D, 19E, 19G behind door 2, and row 46 and 45D, 45E, 45G behind door 3. ZIPAIR sells these as a separate, more expensive seat category, and only until 48 hours before departure.
Row 46: read the letter before you pay
- 46A and 46K — no usable window. The glass sits well behind the seat. The exit door also curves into the legroom from about 10in ahead, so your legs angle off to one side. You pay the exit-row price for a wall and a door.
- 46B and 46J — the same legroom with open floor ahead and no door in the way. These are the exit seats to buy.
- 46C and 46H — exit legroom on the aisle; trays fold out of the armrests across the whole row.
Best economy seats
- 46B, 46J — exit-row legroom with open floor ahead.
- 18A, 18B, 18J, 18K — the front row behind door 2: extra legroom and open floor ahead. No floor storage for take-off and landing, and the tray is in the armrest.
- 19D, 19E, 19G — the centre bulkhead, about 31in to the wall. 19E has open floor ahead; all three have trays in the armrests and no floor storage.
- 56A + 56C, 56H + 56K and 57A + 57C, 57H + 57K — the cabin narrows at the back, so the window blocks become two-seat pairs. The best economy seats for a couple on an overnight flight.
- 20A, 20K, 48A, 48K — the best-placed economy windows.
Economy seats to avoid
- 46A, 46K — exit-row price, no window, door in the legroom.
- 19A, 19K, 26A, 26K, 29A, 29K, 33A, 33K, 47A, 47K, 54A, 54K — the window sits behind the seat; lean back to see out.
- Rows 21–34 at the window — the wing fills the view.
Which economy seat for a long overnight flight?
Flights from Honolulu and the West Coast to Tokyo cross the Pacific overnight, and the cheapest upgrade is not a seat category at all — it is position. Lavatories sit at door 2 (ahead of row 18) and at the very back (behind row 57); there are none at door 3. So the middle of each section is the quietest place to sleep.
- Sleeping, solo: a window in rows 20–25 or 47–53, away from both lavatory blocks. 20A, 20K, 48A and 48K have the best-placed glass.
- Sleeping, as a couple: 56A + 56C or 56H + 56K. No stranger to climb over, and extra side space at the window.
- Legroom over sleep: 46B or 46J, but you pay the higher seat fee and have no floor storage.
- Not paying for a seat: ZIPAIR assigns unselected seats for free from 24 hours before departure. Couples who want to sit together should pay; solo travellers can usually take the free assignment.
What you pay for on ZIPAIR
| Item | Standard | Full Flat |
|---|---|---|
| Seat | Recaro recliner, 31in | Lie-flat, direct aisle access |
| Carry-on | 7 kg included (buy up to 15 kg) | 7 kg included (buy up to 15 kg) |
| Checked bag | Paid, per bag, per flight | Paid, per bag, per flight |
| Meals and drinks | Paid (water too) | Paid (water too) |
| Blanket, pillow, kit | Paid | Paid |
| Seat selection | Paid; exit and front rows cost more | Paid |
| Wi-Fi | Free (Starlink) | Free (Starlink) |
Quick-pick summary
| Travelling as | Pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Solo, Full Flat | 1A or 1K, then 3A, 3K, 4A, 4K | Private front row, or a window seat mid-cabin |
| Couple, Full Flat | 2D + 2G or 3D + 3G | Centre pair, clear of row 5 |
| Legroom, economy | 46B, 46J or 18A, 18B, 18J, 18K | Exit or bulkhead legroom with open floor |
| Couple, economy | 56A + 56C or 56H + 56K | Two-seat pair at the window |
| Window, economy | 20A, 20K, 48A, 48K | Best-placed glass, away from the wing |
| Avoid | 46A, 46K, Full Flat row 5 | No window, or lavatories behind |
Frequently asked questions
Is ZIPAIR Full Flat a business-class seat?
The seat is: lie-flat, 1-2-1, direct aisle access, nearly two metres long. The service is not. Meals, checked bags, blankets and seat selection are paid extras in Full Flat just as in economy, and there are no seatback screens.
Does ZIPAIR fly the 787-9?
Not yet. Every ZIPAIR flight is a 787-8. ZIPAIR plans to add 787-9s transferred from Japan Airlines, but not before the second half of 2027.
Which ZIPAIR seats have no window?
46A and 46K, the window seats in the door 3 exit row. The glass sits well behind the seat. 46B and 46J have the same legroom without the problem.
Is ZIPAIR Wi-Fi free?
Yes. Every ZIPAIR 787-8 has Starlink, and it is free on every flight. It is also how you watch anything: there are no seatback screens, so the small film library streams to your own device.
Where are the lavatories on ZIPAIR’s 787-8?
At the front (ahead of row 1), at door 2 (between Full Flat and economy) and at the very back (behind row 57). There are none at door 3, so rows 45–57 share the two at the back.
Comparable guides
- French bee A350-900 — another low-cost long-haul airline, with premium economy instead of a flat bed
- Air Premia 787-9 — South Korea’s hybrid long-haul airline on the same Pacific routes
- Japan Airlines 787-8 — the parent airline’s full-service version of the same aircraft
- Japan Airlines 787-9 — the aircraft type ZIPAIR will inherit
- Norse Atlantic 787-9 — low-cost long-haul across the Atlantic