SAN JOSE – A high-tech airline for low-cost air service will offer new jetliner flights between Tokyo and San Jose starting this year, the air carrier said Wednesday.
ZIPAIR said it would offer flights between Tokyo-Narita Airport and San Jose International Airport by the end of this year.
“We are pleased to announce the launch of our new service to Mineta San Jose International Airport in December 2022,” said Shingo Nishida, President of ZIPAIR Tokyo.
The airline provides automated services to enable passengers to check-in the day before their flights and provides techno-forced services on the company’s airplanes.
San Jose Mayor Sam Licardo said, “We are thrilled to welcome ZipAir and its unique, low-cost service, which complements international service continuing to attract attention to San Jose International Airport.”
The details of the new flights are not yet fully worked out.
“With convenient nonstop flight between Tokyo Narita and Northern California, we certainly look forward to welcoming more visitors to travel between the Americas and Asia,” said Nishida, whose air carrier is a subsidiary of Japan Airlines. Company is.
The airline must obtain government approval for an international route before ZIPAIR can officially begin service.
In December 2021, ZIPAIR launched direct service between Los Angeles and Tokyo Narita, where the airline maintains its headquarters.
John Aitken, San Jose’s director of aviation, said, “Zipair represents a new kind of airline that leverages technology to deliver an efficient, more accessible travel experience, perfect for San Jose and Silicon Valley.” “
The announcement of brand-new airline services between San Jose and Japan comes on the heels of the relaunch of British Airways flights connecting San Jose with London’s Heathrow Airport.
The expansion of air service internationally shows that Silicon Valley’s travel industry is slowly beginning to overcome illnesses linked to the coronavirus, which has sickened the region’s economy, after government agencies reported the deadly bug. Massive trade closures were ordered to counter the spread of
Silicon Valley’s travel industry relies more heavily on business trips than many other markets.
That business-oriented dynamic has hindered a rebound in the travel market in the South Bay as business travel recovers much more slowly than leisure travel in the United States.
Signs are starting to sprout to suggest travel is accelerating, however, flight and passenger figures posted by San Jose Airport show.
In April, the most recent month for which figures were available as of Wednesday, San Jose airport handled 972,600 passengers. This was more than double the number of passengers San Jose Airport handled 465,600 passengers in April 2021.
Still, airport activity climbed too high before it could reach the heights it once enjoyed before the arrival of the coronavirus.
The April 2022 monthly total was 74% of the pre-coronavirus average of 1.32 million passengers a month in the one-year period ended February 2020.
“Zipair’s announcement reflects renewed global confidence in the strength of the San Jose market and the continued importance of Silicon Valley,” said Mayor Licardo.
