Japan Airlines (JAL) has decorated a B777-200ER aircraft with a special design in celebration of the airline becoming a member of the oneworld alliance, the world's leading quality multilateral airline alliance.

The design is of a globe in the distinctive blue of oneworld, and symbolizes the convenience, comfort, value and choice available to passengers throughout the alliance's comprehensive global network.

On April 16, the first flight of the aircraft with the new livery took place when it left Narita (Tokyo) for Moscow. The aircraft, registration JA704J will fly mainly on JAL's Japan - Europe routes.

JAL plans to unveil a second aircraft with the same special oneworld livery on April 30. The aircraft, a B777-300 with the registration number JA8941, will be operated on domestic routes in Japan.

On April 1, JAL became a full member of oneworld and started offering the alliances services and benefits.

Five other members of the JAL Group joined oneworld alongside Japan Airlines on the same day, as affiliates - JALways, Japan Asia Airways, JAL Express, J-AIR and Japan Transocean Air.

With its five oneworld affiliates, JAL adds nearly 50 destinations to the oneworld alliance network - almost 40 of them in Japan, and the rest in China and elsewhere in Asia. JAL also brings one new territory onto the oneworld map, in Guam.

Members of the JAL Mileage Bank (JMB) can now earn and redeem mileage awards on all other oneworld carriers. JAL Global Club Premier, JMB Diamond and Sapphire cardholders can also now gain access to the 400 airport lounges worldwide offered by the alliance's airlines.

Frequent flyer programme members of the other oneworld airlines - American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific Airways, Finnair, Iberia, LAN Airlines, Malev, Qantas, and Royal Jordanian - can now earn and redeem awards and receive all other oneworld benefits on JAL.

JAL's network is also now covered by oneworld's extensive range of alliance fares and sales products.

oneworld has been the only global airline alliance with the customer convenience of interline e-ticketing between all its partners for two years already, enabling passengers to transfer between its airlines' flights without the need for traditional paper tickets.

The same convenience is extended across JAL as it boards the grouping, as part of a comprehensive programme which has seen all its internal processes and procedures brought into line with the alliance's requirements.