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Tokyo Haneda’s International Terminal opens a new era of competition betweek the city’s two major airports |
JAPAN. Tokyo Haneda Airport’s new International Terminal opened on 21 October along with a new 2,500m runway, in a move that sets the stage for an expansion of global air services to and from Tokyo, and competition with the established gateway of Narita Airport.
The terminal opened for operations at 4pm on Thursday 21 October, and received its first arrival at 5.45am with the landing of ANA Flight NH1276 from Hong Kong. An official opening ceremony and ribbon cutting was concluded by 6.50am, and the first departure was at 8.20am with JAL Flight JL091 to Seoul Gimpo.
When its full roster of services launches from 31 October, Haneda will host 17 international routes with 40 daily slots linking the Japanese capital with destinations including Bangkok, Beijing, Honolulu, London, Los Angeles, Paris, New York and Singapore. By 2013, airport authority Tokyo International Air Terminal Corporation (TIAT) aims to offer 90,000 international daytime slots per year.
Until last week Haneda had offered domestic services and a limited charter flight programme to Beijing, Hong Kong, Seoul and Shanghai.
The expanded international capacity sets up Haneda in competition with Narita Airport. TIAT is banking on two main factors for competitive advantage.
The first is proximity: Haneda Airport is only 20 km from downtown Tokyo, by contrast to the 66 km required to reach Narita (in neighbouring Chiba prefecture).
The second is transit: with its larger domestic operations, Haneda offers more convenience for passengers transferring between international and domestic flights, cutting out the need for many international passengers to make the 60–90 minute road trip between Haneda and Narita.
The five-storey, 159,000sq m terminal offers 3,900sq m of retail space with 21 duty free stores and boutiques.
TIAT’s major shareholders hold the retail concessions in the new terminal. ANA is managing two stores (a duty free and a souvenir store) airside; JAL has a main duty free store and a last-minute store; Japan Airport Terminal Company (JATCo) has concessions for two duty free stores along with a news outlet and pharmacy; and Narita International Airport Corporation (NAA) also is managing a general duty free and a souvenir store.
NOTE: Look out for a feature article on Haneda Airport’s new terminal – and how it will impact commercial revenues for Tokyo’s lucrative aviation market – coming soon from The Moodie Report.
