ZIPAIR Tokyo, the low-cost subsidiary of Japan Airlines, announced its second destination in the United States. The airline will debut in Los Angeles (LAX) on December 25, 2021 with three weekly flights operated by Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
The schedule is as follows:
- Tokyo Narita – Los Angeles ZG24 NRT 14:45 – LAX 07:40 – three weekly flights on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.
- Los Angeles – Tokyo Narita ZG23 LAX 09:40 – NRT 14:25+1 – three weekly flights on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.
Promotional fares are from USD 284 and for travelers under 7 years of age from USD 120.
ZIPAIR has a fleet of three Boeing 787-8s configured with 18 seats in business class and 272 seats in economy class. It currently serves four international destinations: Honolulu (HNL) with 3 weekly flights, Bangkok (BKK) with daily flights, Seoul – Incheon (ICN) with 6 weekly flights, and Singapore (SIN) with one weekly flight. Prior to the pandemic, the low-cost airline had planned to land on the west coast from Portland (PDX).
“Since the introduction of ZIPAIR, one of our core objectives was to establish a cross-Pacific flight and I couldn’t be prouder to be here today to announce the launch of our Los Angeles route. Our mission is to define a new standard in the air travel industry by offering a unique low-cost business model on long-haul international routes,” said Shingo Nishida, President of ZIPAIR Tokyo.
“There is a growing demand for non-stop flights between Los Angeles and Narita International Airport, and we are excited that ZIPAIR shares our desire to provide additional options for our guests who want to experience the food, culture, art and history of Japan and the surrounding region,” said Becca Doten, Deputy Executive Director, Public and Government Affairs, Los Angeles World Airports.
ZIPAIR marks a new milestone, the Los Angeles (LAX) – Tokyo Narita (NRT) air connection is historically known as one of the most premium routes in the transpacific market, and for the first time a low-cost carrier is entering a sector highly targeted by traditional airlines.
In previous years several Asian carriers have used Narita (NRT) as a stopover for onward flights to Los Angeles (LAX), including Korean Air, Malaysia Airlines, and Thai Airways.
Data obtained by Aviacionline through the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) indicates that 889,475 passengers were mobilized in 2019 between Los Angeles (LAX) and Tokyo Narita (NRT), one of the main transpacific routes where there were 6 daily flights split between All Nippon Airways, Japan Airlines, Singapore Airlines, American Airlines, and United Airlines.
Airlines currently operating between Los Angeles (LAX) and Tokyo Narita (NRT) are:
- Singapore Airlines, three weekly flights on Boeing 777-300ERs.
- United Airlines, three weekly flights on Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.
- Japan Airlines, daily flights on Boeing 777-300ER.
- All Nippon Airways, daily flights on Boeing 777-300ER.
