AirAsia Japan given green light to fly

TOKYO: AirAsia Japan Co Ltd has been granted the Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) by the Japanese government and will re-enter the market in the spring of 2016.
The budget airline has picked Central Japan International Airport (Centrair) in Aichi prefecture as its main hub.
It is scheduled to commence operations from Centrair to Shin-Chitose Airport in Sapporo, Sendai Airport in Sendai and Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in Taipei.
“We are very excited to be back in Japan. We have fantastic partners here and we are united in the vision to change the way people travel in Japan.
“Centrair Airport is a fantastic base and with our new routes, we look forward not only to enable the Japanese to enjoy our direct destinations but to connect them to the rest of Asia and beyond on our extensive network,” AirAsia group CEO Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said in a statement yesterday.
AirAsia Japan applied for the AOC in July.
AirAsia first establshed AirAsia Japan as a joint venture with All Nippon Airways Co in 2011. The joint venture began flying aircraft within Japan in 2012 but was terminated the following year.
The former Japanese unit renamed itself Vanilla Air Inc and resumed operations under ANA’s umbrella in December 2013.