Overheard at Honolulu

Tyler Brule in this weekend's Financial Times has recorded this rather amusing exchange between an irate customer and a saintly check-in agent from Hawaiian Airlines:

Serviceman no 1: Is this the check-in for Japan Airlines?
Nice lady from Hawaiian: No, this is the check-in for ANA, operated by Air Japan.
Serviceman no 2: So we can check-in for JAL here?
Nice lady from Hawaiian: No, that’s down the concourse. Just beyond those counters to the left.
Serviceman no 2: So why are there separate check-ins for the same flight?
Nice lady from Hawaiian: Ummmm ... there’s not. This is for ANA, operated by Air Japan. Japan Airlines is the other national carrier.
Serviceman no 1: You mean there’s an airline called Japan Airlines and another one called Air Japan? That’s really f**ked-up.
Nice lady from Hawaiian: Hard to believe, I know, but it’s true.
Serviceman no 2: But JAL and Japan Airlines are the same thing, right?

He adds: "I didn’t linger long enough to see if the pair made it beyond security, but it was one of those moments when you question whether passport applicants should have to pass some type of exam."