An 
American Airlines
flight from New York to Tokyo was forced to divert to Dallas/Fort Worth after it had already begun crossing the Pacific Ocean on its way to the Japanese capital.
Diverting to Dallas/Fort Worth
According to Flightradar24 data, an American Airlines Boeing 787-9,
registered as N829AN, was forced to divert to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport
(DFW) despite the fact that it was already cruising above the Pacific Ocean.
The flight tracking service showed that the 787-9 departed New York John F. Kennedy International Airport
(JFK) on flight AA167 at 10:59 local time (UTC -4) toward Tokyo Haneda Airport
(HND) on March 31.
Photo: Abdul N Quraishi – Abs | Shutterstock
After crossing across the northern part of the US – and a brief legal incursion into the airspace of Canada – at around 13:15 local time (UTC -7), the 787-9 left the continental US and began crossing the Pacific Ocean.
However, at around 12:51 local time (UTC -9), the flight began turning back toward the US, and after around another five hours in the air, the 787-9 landed at Dallas/Fort Worth at 22:12 local time (UTC -5), according to Flightradar24 records.
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Maintenance issues
In a post on the social media network Reddit, a passenger onboard the flight shared their experience of the flight. According to them, right as the 787-9 was over the Pacific Ocean, the captain came on the speaker and informed passengers that there was a mechanical issue with the aircraft, prompting the pilots’ decision to fly back to the US.
Several hours later, the aircraft landed in Dallas, with the airline providing accommodation and meal vouchers, the passenger said, adding that their flight to Tokyo-Haneda would depart at 12:00 on April 1.
“Safety definitely comes first, and I am glad we had a safe landing, but it does suck to waste 13 hours on a flight and have to do it all over again tomorrow. Not to mention, our vacation plans need to be adjusted.”
In a statement to Simple Flying, an American Airlines spokesperson confirmed that the 787-9 diverted to Dallas/Fort Worth due to “a maintenance issue.” Flight AA167 will depart Texas on April 1, added the representative, who also affirmed that affected passengers received accommodation.
Photo: Austin Deppe | Shutterstock
“We never want to disrupt our customers’ travel plans, and we are sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused.”
Flightradar24 records showed that AA167 will be operated by another 787-9, registered as N830AN, which, at the time of publishing, was operating flight AA962 from Sao Paulo Guarulhos International Airport (GRU) to Dallas/Fort Worth.
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Tokyo network
Flight AA167 was just one of five American Airlines flights scheduled to depart from the US for Tokyo-Haneda or Tokyo Narita International Airport
(NRT) on March 31.
Photo: Great Circle Map
In addition to the flight from New York-JFK, the carrier had flights from Dallas/Fort Worth to Tokyo-Haneda and Tokyo-Narita, flight AA175 and flight AA61, respectively, and two departures from Los Angeles International Airport
(LAX) to Tokyo-Haneda, flight AA169 and flight AA27.
At the time of publishing, all of the aforementioned flights, apart from the itinerary that had to divert to Dallas/Fort Worth, successfully landed at either of Tokyo’s airports.
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AloJapan.com