Tokyo Haneda Airport has been opened up with a new U.S. and Japan agreement on slots at the close in airport. The agreement is for 12 slots a day connecting the downtown Tokyo Airport with the United States to begin in October of 2016. Five slot pairs will be designated for day operations, along with one pair at night. The agreement follows the distribution of 31 international slot pairs two years ago, in which the U.S. failed to acquire any of the slots. This news comes just one week after American Airlines launched an overnight flight from Los Angeles to Tokyo Haneda Airport. The airline is now planning to change the departure and arrival times this fall to take advantage of new daytime slots being opened up to the U.S. air carriers.
Tokyo Haneda Airport vs. Narita
Haneda Airport is much more desirable for U.S. air carriers, as it puts their higher fare business travelers much closer to downtown Tokyo than at Narita International Airport. Tokyo’s international flights were moved to the new Narita Airport in 1978 to help reduce noise and congestion at Haneda. Narita’s opening was delayed by many years due to civil unrest and protests over the site picked for its construction. The downtown Haneda Airport expanded in 2010, adding a new international terminal and a fourth runway.
