JL°/MM/NH*/BC | Japan-Based Carriers

[hkskyline]

Skymark wins over Japan
Bloomberg News
21 September 2007

TOKYO -- Skymark Airlines, the largest discount carrier in Japan, came back from two years of losses by doing something the country's biggest airlines have failed to do: win new domestic customers.

Skymark is attracting passengers with fares as much as 48 percent cheaper than Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways. The airline, which made a first-quarter profit, is also cutting costs by converting to a single type of aircraft, mimicking the strategy of Southwest Airlines, the world's largest low-fare carrier, and Ryanair Holdings, the biggest discounter in Europe.

''It's out of the crisis,'' said Mitsushige Akino of Ichiyoshi Investment Management in Tokyo. ''Skymark's stock is going to gain as investors put a premium on its growth prospects.''

The shares may climb to ¥350, or $3, in the next six months from Thursday's closing price of ¥232 because Skymark has higher growth potential than rivals like All Nippon, said Yasuhiro Matsumoto, an analyst at Shinsei Securities in Tokyo.

Skymark stock, already up 24 percent this year, is still worth less than one-seventh of its February 2005 peak of ¥1,770.

Passenger traffic at Skymark is rising as a decline in Japanese wages makes consumers more price-conscious.

''There is a move to buy cheaper goods in Japan,'' said Yoshiki Shinke, senior economist at Dai-Ichi Life Research Institute in Tokyo. ''The rise of the Internet has made it easier to compare prices, and that has helped discount airlines.''

Skymark's basic fare to fly from Tokyo to Sapporo in October is ¥16,000, compared with ¥30,700 at All Nippon and Japan Air, according to the carriers.

Like most discount airlines, Skymark does not offer free snacks or newspapers on most if its flights.

''I fly with them because they're cheap,'' said Hiroki Fukui, an assistant university professor waiting to board a flight at Haneda airport in Tokyo. ''I've flown with them half a dozen times now. I don't mind if there aren't any frills.''

The airline carried 40 percent more customers in the six months ended June 30 than a year earlier, compared with a 0.9 percent slide at All Nippon and a 1.5 percent drop at Japan Air. Skymark forecasts a profit in the full fiscal year, only its third since it began flights in 1998.

Skymark still has room to grow. It flew 1.7 million passengers in the first six months of this year, less than a tenth of Japan Air's 20.5 million or All Nippon's 21.3 million.

Skymark, which flies only within Japan, has moved quickly to cut routes that were not making money. That helped it fill 75 percent of seats on flights in the three months to June, compared with an average of 56 percent a year earlier.

By comparison, Japan Air filled 59.2 percent of its seats last quarter and All Nippon filled 59.9 percent. The two bigger airlines have increased the pace of cutting unprofitable routes since Skymark's changes last year. Still, Japan Air backed off from ending flights between the cities of Matsumoto and Sapporo earlier this year amid local opposition.

''Skymark never treated routes as a public responsibility and so didn't hesitate to cut them,'' said Matsumoto, the Shinsei analyst.

Skymark ended flights to three destinations at the start of last year and began flying between Tokyo and Sapporo, the busiest air route, according to Japan Air.

All Nippon and Japan Air are responding to Skymark by cutting fares. Earlier this month, they announced discounts for early morning and afternoon flights from Tokyo to Sapporo with prices as low as ¥14,900, or 51 percent cheaper than regular fares, and less than Skymark's regular fare.

The budget carrier is undercutting those fares with discounts of as much as 24 percent for bookings eight days in advance, with tickets to Sapporo from Tokyo as low as ¥12,100 yen.

So far, Skymark is winning the price wars, luring passengers from the more established carriers in a market where consumers are known for their loyalty to well-known brands.

[hkskyline]

Skymark Airlines To Double Fleet Size By FY 2010 - Report
24 December 2007

TOKYO (Dow Jones)-- Skymark Airlines Inc. (9204.TO) President Shinichi Nishikubo tells the Yomiuri Shimbun in an exclusive interview that the budget airline plans to double its number of aircraft to 20 by fiscal 2010 when a new runway will be opened at Haneda Airport in Tokyo.

Skymark plans to expand its network of routes and shift the makeup of its fleet toward smaller jets that are cheaper to operate and offer better seat occupancy rates, Nishikubo said in the interview.

Nishikubo added that Skymark Airlines is trying to shed its image as the newcomer in Japan's air industry.

[FM 2258]

Don't they fly Boeing 767s? I'd love to see them obtain a fleet of Boeing 787s.

[hkskyline]

Originally Posted by FM 2258

Don't they fly Boeing 767s? I'd love to see them obtain a fleet of Boeing 787s.

Search on airliners.net found some 737s as well.

[hkskyline]

Skymark to add 7 planes if wins 20 Haneda slots-source
25 December 2009

TOKYO, Dec 25 (Reuters) - Japan's Skymark Airlines Inc is ready to introduce seven more Boeing 737-800 planes to its fleet if the discount carrier can get 20 more landing slots at Tokyo's Haneda airport, a company source said.

Haneda, which currently handles mainly domestic flights, is scheduled to open a fourth runway next year, allowing airlines to launch new routes.

Hoping to expand further and introduce overseas routes, Japan's biggest budget carrier has been aiming to get 20 of the 130 new slots, or 15 percent.

"Twenty more slots would mean an additional seven planes," said the source, who asked not to be identified.

Seven planes would come on top of its current 12 737-800 single-aisle aircraft. Even if it does not get as many slots as it wants, the company has plans to increase its fleet to 16 by March 2011.

It would probably need 70 more pilots on top of the 120 it already employs if it is granted the extra slots, the source said, adding that the firm has already had 30-40 applicants, mostly from crew leaving Japan Airlines.

Skymark's aggressive expansion plans come as JAL and All Nippon Airways, Japan's top two airlines, struggle with a sharp drop in a passenger numbers as the global economic slowdown makes people less willing to travel.

The downturn has forced JAL to seek a bailout from a state-backed fund established to inject capital into and buy the debt of struggling but viable firms.

In contrast, Skymark lifted its annual net profit forecast by 33 percent in October, citing rising passenger demand and cost cutting.

The carrier, whose cabin crew wear polo shirts and windbreakers, is also seeking government approval to start flying to Asian cities such as Taipei, Seoul, Beijing and Shanghai, the source said.

[hkskyline]

Skymark pilots punished for failing to stay alert during flights
22 June 2010
Kyodo News

TOKYO, June 22 -- The Japanese government Tuesday punished four pilots at Skymark Airlines for failing to stay alert during commercial flights between April 2009 and February 2010.

A co-pilot who took photos of three chief pilots on six separate flights in violation of the aviation law will be barred from flight duty for 60 days, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism said. The three captains have each been subjected to a 20-day flying ban, the ministry said.

The co-pilot has been dismissed by the budget airline.

The ministry also issued a warning to another captain and co-pilot at Skymark who failed to input altitude data into an auto-pilot system, with the result that they flew their aircraft at a higher altitude than instructed by air traffic control in March this year.

[deasine]

SKYMARK CEO PREDICTS FLEET OF 50 AIRCRAFT
December 21, 2010

Japan's Skymark Airlines will almost triple its fleet to 50 aircraft in the next four years made up of Boeing 737s and Airbus A380s, its chief said on Tuesday.

The expansion is part of a bid to turn the largely domestic discount carrier into an international airline to challenge Japan's two big established operators Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways on both long- and short-haul routes, said CEO Shinichi Nishikubo, who with a 52 percent stake is also the company's biggest shareholder.

"The core of our fleet will be leased 737s," Nishikubo said at a press event in Tokyo.

With two aircraft types and 50 jets Skymark would have about a quarter of the 210 aircraft operated by nearest rival ANA, which flies six models ranging from Boeing 747s to propellor engined 56-seat Bombardier regional planes.

Skymark has no plans to issue new shares to pay for the expansion, which will also include hiring 300 cabin crew and 110 maintenance personnel, he added.

Shares of Skymark soared after Nishikubo's comments and ended up 5.8 percent.

Skymark, which currently flies 18 737s, in November became the first Japanese airline to order the Airbus A380. The discount carrier ordered four of the aircraft, worth USD$1.4 billion at list price with the option for two more. It may eventually operate a fleet of 15 of the superjumbos to ferry passengers to destinations in Europe and the US, it said.

The company said it plans to pay cash for two of the ordered aircraft and lease the others, although he warned that any strong gain in the US dollar, which would add to the yen cost of the purchase, might prompt the carrier to cancel its options.

ROLLS-ROYCE ENGINES

Nishikubo said he may pick Rolls-Royce engines for the aircraft despite problems that have grounded some Airbus superjumbos as long as the UK-based maker can say how it intends to fix the fault.

A Qantas A380 had to make an emergency landing in Singapore after one of its Rolls-Royce engines exploded mid-air, puncturing the wing.

Just over half of the 41 A380s delivered so far have Rolls-Royce engines, on jets flown by Qantas, Singapore Airlines and Lufthansa. The rest use engines built by a joint venture between General Electric and Pratt & Whitney.

Nishikubo declined to say how much he has agreed to pay for the A380s, but said that the European aircraft maker "had made a great effort on the price."

The decision by Japan's No.3 airline boosted a bid from Airbus to widen its 10 percent share of the Japanese market after it had failed for years to convince the nation's two biggest carriers.

"Many people were considerably surprised by the order," Nishikubo said, adding that he picked the big Airbus jet because it employed the latest aviation technology.

JAL, which declared bankruptcy, has never bought aircraft from the European company preferring planes from rival Boeing, many of which are partly built in Japan by a consortium of aerospace companies including Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Kawasaki Heavy industries.

(Reuters)

(Air Wise, 2010)

[Kaitak747]

[mike_feng90]

According to the press release, ANA will be launching a new daily service to Chengdu from Narita on June 20, 2011.
Flights operate with a B737-700 seating 120 passengers.

It will be ANA's 10th city and the 11th Airport served in China.
Also, it is ANA's first destination in the inland of China, while the current cities served are coastal cities.

ANA China Network for 2011

Narita-Beijing - 2x B767/A320
Narita-Shanghai-Pudong - 21x B763/B772/A320
Narita-Hong Kong - 14x B767-300
Narita-Guangzhou - 7x B737-700
Narita-Dalian - 7x B767-300
Narita-Hangzhou - 4x A320
Narita-Chengdu - 7x B737-700
Narita-Shenyang - 7x B737-700
Narita-Qingdao - 7x B767-300
Narita-Xiamen - 7x B737-700

Haneda-Beijing - 7x B777-200 (To be 14x)
Haneda-Shanghai-Hongqiao - 7x B777-200 (To be 14x)
Haneda-Hong Kong - 7x B77W

Kansai-Beijing - 7x B737-700
Kansai-Shanghai-Pudong - 14x B767-300
Kansai-Hong Kong - 7x B767-300
Kansai-Dalian - 7x B737-700
Kansai-Hangzhou - 3x B737-700
Kansai-Qingdao - 4x B737-700

Nagoya-Shanghai-Pudong - 7x B737-700 [To be Resumed]

[Kaitak747]

Official Press Release of JAL



http://press.jal.co.jp/en/release/201101/001728.html



~ To reflect the commitment and determination of a New JAL ~

TOKYOJanuary 19, 2011:

The JAL Group (JAL) today will adopt a new corporate policy and announced its decision to change its logo from April 1, 2011; symbolizing a fresh start for the airline group with its strengthened commitment to society and reinvigorated determination of the management and all employees.

The motif that will be used is of a soaring Japanese red-crown crane with its wings extended in full flight - an auspicious icon of Japan representing the high spirits of the Japanese people and their sensitive attention to detail. First registered as a trademark of Japan Airlines in August 1959, the circular crane mark was painted on the entire fleet during the period of JAL’s international network expansion. It stayed a main feature of the JAL livery for more than 40 years and became an unmistakable image representing Japan Airlines and the country it connected the world with. Bearing this mark on its aircraft, JAL displayed the uniqueness and progress of Japan to the world and it often invoked a sense of pride and familiarity in many Japanese as well as its loyal customers.

The symbol of the crane has come to be associated with the nation’s distinct hallmarks of pristine quality and reliability. For customers, JAL is determined to safeguard these values of the Japanese culture and to continue reflecting its quintessential hospitality from the heart in the airline’s authentic services - a promise that is now embodied in the Group’s new corporate policy unveiled today.

"Japan Airlines started out as a pioneer and ventured on a path where no other company in Japan explored," said JAL Group President Masaru Onishi. "Today, we firmly resolve to recapture the unity and challenging spirit that our employees possessed at the time of JAL's founding, and together, we will propel the company forward over the hurdles that lie ahead to again stand at the forefront of this ever-evolving industry."

“Now, represented by the high-flying crane, we hereby renew our commitment to provide our valued customers with the highest levels of service, and to diligently raise our corporate value so that the JAL Group can once again contribute to the advancement of society.”

The first aircraft to be painted with the new logo will be a Boeing 767-300ER for international flights. With the exception of staff uniforms which will remain unchanged, corporate items bearing the current logo such as signage, name tags and stationery will gradually be phased out over the next few years.

[Kaitak747]

[Kaitak747]

Retirement of 747-300

[deasine]

I'm not a big fan is the changing JAL brand. It seems like a step back rather than a step forward.

There is already a thread for SkyMark... do you guys think we should merge all the threads together or have individual Japanese carrier threads.

[deasine]

I'm not a big fan is the changing JAL brand. It seems like a step back rather than a step forward.

There is already a thread for SkyMark... do you guys think we should merge all the threads together or have individual Japanese carrier threads.

[hkskyline]

[AsianDragons]

Originally Posted by deasine

I'm not a big fan is the changing JAL brand. It seems like a step back rather than a step forward.

There is already a thread for SkyMark... do you guys think we should merge all the threads together or have individual Japanese carrier threads.

just this one will do

[dreamery]

Following the link you can see an image of model with new livery

[klm.b777]

I donnot like the new colours. Just leave it to the colours they have on their planes now, will save up alot of money.

[Kaitak747]

I think JAL wanna remind Japanese passengers of their good old time

[hkskyline]

Skymark Rethinks Its Strategy Of Flying Debt-Free
24 January 2011

TOKYO (Nikkei)--As Skymark Airlines Inc. (9204) sets its sights on launching international services in fiscal 2014, the budget carrier's days of debt-free management could be over if it takes out bank loans to help purchase jumbo jets.

The firm relies in principle on liquidity on hand and equity financing for not only short-term working capital, but also aircraft parts purchases and other long-term funding needs. This means that it ends every fiscal year without interest-bearing debt.

For the planned international services, the country's No. 4 airline will fly to London, Frankfurt and New York from Narita airport. It will use Airbus A380 superjumbos, each costing 20-30 billion yen. Given the multiple routes, Skymark will need to buy at least two of them, requiring 40-60 billion yen.

But Skymark's cash reserves came to some 7.5 billion yen at the end of fiscal 2009. Even if domestic operations remain on a smooth trajectory, the firm will likely have just 40 billion yen or so in cash by the end of fiscal 2013. And even if it spends half of this on aircraft, Skymark will need to find at least 20 billion yen from external sources.

"We've no plans for a capital increase," President Shinichi Nishikubo insists.

"A capital increase comes with the problem of diluting our share price," an executive explains. "And depending on market value, it's also uncertain whether we can procure the necessary funds."

Management's focus has shifted to considering loans partly because of the clear turnaround in profits. Generally speaking, a firm with lackluster profits has a hard time taking out long-term loans from financial institutions. Although Skymark previously suffered through a period of dismal earnings, it swung to an operating profit on a parent-only basis in fiscal 2009, thanks to streamlining efforts and an increase in cost-conscious passengers.

And on Wednesday, Skymark raised its parent-only operating profit forecast for this fiscal year from 9.1 billion yen to 10.3 billion yen on the back or rising passenger numbers. This was due to cheap airfares and because an increase in aircraft in use "has brought stability to flights," points out Seiichiro Samejima of the Ichiyoshi Research Institute.

Against this backdrop, a number of mainly foreign-affiliated financial institutions are apparently making overtures to Skymark. Low interest rates thanks to global monetary easing will also work in the airline's favor.

But loans will be a negative for financial soundness. Even if Skymark chooses borrowing over a capital increase, buying A380s will nevertheless swell total assets. Unless international flights generate considerable profits, return on assets will decline.

Terrorism, pandemics and other calamities mean that international flights carry more "event risk" than domestic services. The management skills of Nishikubo, who has declared a goal of turning a profit in the first year for international services, will surely be put to the test.

--Translated from an article by Nikkei staff writer Taro Matsushita