Japan Airlines rocks!
I was supposed to show up at Narita airport an hour before my flight's scheduled departure on the 18th but didn't make it there until about 55 minutes prior. When I tried to check-in, I discovered that I could no longer do so. A JAL staffperson informed me that I had arrived too late and would have to catch the next flight. She then discovered that all flights for the next 2 days were fully booked. Moved by my wild-eyed desperation, she called the gate and tried to see if she could get me on the flight anyway. By the time she explained things to the gate, there were only 20 minutes left before boarding was to commence and I it was unlikely that I'd make it through security in time. That's when they pulled a rabbit out of their hat. After sticking a red aeroplane-shaped sticker on me, one of the JAL staff lead me to the crew security area, where there was no line-up, and got me through.
So far, so good. But I still needed to return my $200 rental keitei (cell phone) and there was no way for me to do that. That's when JAL really came through for me. They contacted the phone rental company and arranged to get the phone back to them on my behalf. Best airline service I've ever had :-)
