For my trip back home to Toronto the cheapest flight I could get was on American Airlines with two changes in Tokyo and New York. A direct flight on Korean Air was $700 more which is quite costly to begin with, add to that my two China trips in August and September, and it all adds up. However, I was able to get some very good aeriel shots from the plane.

The first flight was from Busan and I got a very good view of Gwangalli Beach and the large bridge panning across the sea . Then in Tokyo I had the first flight connection. In Tokyo the ground staff will all bow on the tarmac as the plane taxies out. Next was a 12.5 hour flight to New York.

Arrival in New York was 6pm on a clear sunny evening. We flew over an airport I thought might be LaGuardia but when I checked on the map it was another one so not sure. Then we flew south over Manhattan Island so I had a very good view of all the skyscapers at the southern tip of the island, as well as Central Park and the many bridges on the island.

Then we did a flyover JFK so I had a clear view of the terminal buildings, all the planes, and the runways. The flight went toward the ocean before turning around for the descent. There was a cruiseship heading out to see. On the descent we came over Long Beach and saw many wealthy homes away from the beaches.
 
The flight actually comes over Toronto to New York so I could have parachuted out. Instead had to add another 5 hours to the journey with connection wait times . On two departing flights they were announcing they were overbooked and could volunteers go on the next flight in return for a $350 future credit.

I was hoping for that on my flight so I could use the credit on Japan Airlines which is part of the OneWorld alliance, but unfortunately they didnt. Once again on the descent into Toronto at night I had a clear view of the city, however night shots are difficult on my camera especially when taken from a moving object.

In New York you have to collect your checked bag and rescreen them for security which I did. Unfortunately, when I arrived in Toronto there was no bag. Apparently it had been stopped in New York, but if stopped they do not look at it right away. I had bought two trucks for my nephew which took up half the bag so must have showed up in the x-ray as a strange large object.

The next day the bag showed up in the early evening. They also cut the lock even though I had a special one approved by the TSA so that they have a master key to open them. I dont think I will transit thru the States again due to the hyper sensitivity at security and many procedures to go thru. The bag actually travelled all across continental US from Tokyo where there was a bigger risk than a 50 min flight to Toronto. The aeriel shots I got made it worthwhile though.

Hopefully on the way back thru Chicago I will not have problems again as they said you prescreen US security in Toronto. If you transit thru the states make sure you have minimum two hours to go thru all the airport clearances