EVA Air brings ‘Hello Kitty’ to LAX with new Boeing 777 themed jet

Hello Kitty fans are excited over the fact that Taiwan-based EVA Air now has a Hello Kitty-themed plane flying to and from the United States.

EVA Air's Hello Kitty-themed Boeing 777 arrived at Los Angeles International this week. photo EVA Air

Hello Kitty characters perform after EVA Air’s themed 777 touched down in Los Angeles this week. photo EVA Air

This week K.W. Chang, the chairman of EVA Air flew a Boeing 777 painted with the brand-new “Hello Kitty Hand-in-Hand” livery from Taipei, Taiwan to Los Angeles.

The scene shows 19 Hello Kitty characters marketed by the Sanrio company, which has made Hello Kitty famous worldwide.

The design stretches along the entire length of the aircraft and “has been designed to bridge cultural barriers and invite new friendships from around the world,” the airline said.

The jet will now be used on three of the carrier’s 17 weekly flights between Taipei and L.A.

EVA Air currently has five shorter range Airbus 330 Hello Kitty Jets servicing routes within Asia and to Guam. Each has its own theme: Hello Kitty Magic, Apple, Global, Happy Music and Speed Puff. The new 777 jet is the first Hello Kitty jet to fly to the U.S.

EVA Air’s chairman said he originally came up with the idea of Hello Kitty-themed planes “to make flying fun,” but the airline said it chose Los Angeles as its first long-range Hello Kitty Jet route “to not only attract more passengers from the United States but also to demonstrate the importance of the route.”

A crew of 35 engineers spent almost two weeks painting the aircraft livery instead of using aviation-grade adhesive to put the characters in place.

Passengers get Hello Kitty boarding passes and baggage stickers, while inside the plane, the cabin crew wears pink aprons that have Hello Kitty designs and during the flights, passengers use more than 100 in-flight service items, including Hello Kitty headrest covers, pillows, tissue, hand cream, hand-washing liquid, napkins, paper cups, utensils, snacks and meals.