Japan Airlines announces Winter Flights Schedule

Today the JAL Group announced FY2003 winter schedule details, which reflect the steady recovery of international passenger demand.

In the first half of the year, the Iraq conflict and the SARS outbreaks inflicted a severe negative impact on international passenger demand, resulting in reduced frequency and suspension of flights.

With the demand slump bottoming out in May, JAL has been steadily reinstating flights and by autumn most international flight operations will be back to originally planned levels.

However, because of continuing low passenger demand on some international routes, such as from regional Japanese cities to Honolulu and between Japan and South Asia, some suspensions and frequency reductions remain in place. But on other routes, notably between Japan and Europe, traffic - especially business travel - is increasing.

A key feature of the 2003-4 winter schedule is the realization of double daily non-stop flights on the Tokyo-London route from November 1st making JAL the only Japanese carrier offering two flights a day on this key business route. JAL currently operates 10 weekly flights on the Tokyo-London route and from September 1st this will increase to 13, as previously announced.

From November 1st the second daily Tokyo-London flight will be established, operated by Boeing 777-200ER aircraft, already introduced to the route on a regular basis from August 1st. The two-class 777-200ER aircraft is equipped with 212 economy class seats and 56 'Shell flat seats' in the airline's branded business class, "JAL Executive Class - Seasons". The B777-200ER also features the JAL 'Magic 3' audio-video on demand (avod) in-flight entertainment system offering 30 channels of programming for passengers in both classes.

JAL's award-winning 'Shell flat seat', already installed on Tokyo-London and Tokyo-New York flights will be introduced on the Tokyo-Paris route from January 2004.

WINTER SCHEDULE HIGHLIGHTS

Domestic

Since April 1 JAL and JAS have coordinated their domestic networks, eliminating route duplication and basing flight schedules in response to customer needs. This has been very successful with passenger traffic up by 2.3% overall in the first quarter of FY2003 and an increase in the ratio of individual travelers.

International

Transpacific

JAL will suspend flights to Honolulu, Hawaii from four regional cities in Japan because of falling demand.

From October, flights from Sapporo (six per week) and Sendai (four per week) to Honolulu, Hawaii will be suspended. Seasonal services to Honolulu from Niigata (once weekly in winter only) and Hiroshima (twice weekly in summer) will end.

JAL will continue to operate up to 63 flights weekly to Hawaii from the major centers of Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka. The total includes a daily service Tokyo-Kona and 56 flights per week to Honolulu.

Japan-Europe routes (all from November 1st)

- Tokyo-London- Twice daily - up from 10 in August, 13 p.w. from September. (One flight per day by 747-400 - three classes FCY, one by 777-200ER, two class, CY)

- Tokyo-Paris, 9 flights per week (Summer schedule 11 per week)

- Tokyo-Zurich, two flights per week (Summer schedule, 3 per week)

S.E.Asia (all from November 1st)

- Tokyo-Hong Kong 21 flights per week (previous plan, 28 per week)

- Tokyo-Jakarta, Tokyo-Denpasar routes - flight routing consolidated to Tokyo-Jakarta-Denpasar-Jakarta-Tokyo daily

- Tokyo-Delhi three flights per week from October. (Summer schedule 2 per week)

Cargo Services

Because of fluctuations in demand on transpacific and Asian routes, JAL has adjusted all-cargo flight schedules for more profitable operations, effective September 1st.

Transpacific

- Osaka-Anchorage-Atlanta-New York-Anchorage-Tokyo - suspended

- Tokyo-Anchorage-Atlanta-New York-Anchorage-Tokyo, increased by one to three flights per week

Asia - long haul

- Tokyo-Singapore-Bangkok-Hong Kong-Osaka - suspended

- Tokyo-Singapore-Kuala Lumpur- Tokyo - suspended

- Tokyo- Kuala Lumpur-Bangkok- Tokyo - decreased from two to one per week

- Tokyo-Singapore-Kuala Lumpur-Bangkok-Tokyo - increased by one to three flights per week

Asia - short haul

- Tokyo-Hong Kong - increased by one flight per week to three per week.

Fleet Plan

JAL will retire four conventional 747 aircraft and will delay delivery of one Dash-8 Q400 to FY2004 with the result that the total fleet will be 275 aircraft at March 31 2004, four less than the original planned total of 279 announced in January 2003.