Some planespotting for the very first weekend of 2013 - in anticipation of seeing the new United 787 services to/from Tokyo. (And I was far from alone - plenty of hardcore planespotters, all of male middle-aged persuasion except for yours truly.)

And here it is - United's very first 787, N20904, embarking on her first revenue international run, United 32 to Tokyo Narita. What a gorgeous sight!

This flight replaces United 891, which was usually done with a legacy United 777 and occasionally with a 747 in high season. The flight number change is due to the fact that these early 787s, by virtue of being ordered and configured by Continental prior to the merger, are considered Continental aircraft, therefore using the 787 requires the use of a flight number in the Continental international range (United flight numbers 1-200) rather than legacy United international range (800-999).

At this point there were three United 787s at LAX - this one, the second one (N26906) having just completed the return flight United 33 from Narita, and the third one (N26902) parked outside the hangar. That is half of the current United 787 fleet so far.