As leisure travel demand rebounds post-pandemic, ANA Holdings sees Southeast Asia as a pivotal growth area for the Japanese airline.
With this vision, they’re gearing up to introduce a new service between Thailand and Japan under their budget airline brand, AirJapan.
Established just last year, ANA’s new brand recently revealed the launch of a Narita-Bangkok route starting next February. This will be AirJapan’s inaugural service, offering six return flights weekly.
The ticket price for a one-way trip begins at ¥15,500 (3,760 baht) for the “Simple” package, marginally above the rate of another subsidiary budget airline of ANA, namely Peach Aviation.
Moreover, the airline proposes premium “Standard” and “Selected” packages that come with an assortment of food options and varied luggage check-in limits.
The pricing strategy is crafted to attract families from Southeast Asia seeking a service quality surpassing budget airlines. As per ANA, AirJapan offers increased leg space and enhanced meal selections on their 324-seat Boeing 787-8 planes.
Food choices that travelers can decide on beforehand encompass Japanese specialties like chicken and egg rice dish and sushi.
The company indicated its contemplation of introducing additional paths in upcoming times, possibly from Kansai International Airport situated in the western part of Japan.
ANA anticipates that AirJapan’s budget-friendly operations will be profitable, whereas these same services might not yield profits under the premium umbrella of ANA.
The group’s additional budget airline, Peach Aviation, predominantly targets local routes but has branched out to global services, facilitating journeys to places like Bangkok, Seoul, Shanghai, and Taipei.
The influx of overseas tourists to Japan has seen a spike post the government’s relaxation of its Covid-19 border restrictions in the latter part of April. A depreciating yen has also elevated Japan’s appeal as a travel spot, as remarked by ANA.
