Jetstar Japan set to take off in July

On October 6, 2011, Qantas Group firmed an 78 A320neos for its Jetstar family
of low-cost airlines, among them new joint venture Jetstar Japan.

Jetstar Japan has just announced details of its first flights, which are set to debut on 03 July 2012 flying to five major Japanese cities.

The airline's ceo Miyuki Suzuki said there had been a huge response from Japanese people wanting to work at Jetstar Japan, with almost 10,000 expressions of interest received for cabin crew positions.

"The great response we've had from potential crew and the positive discussions we're having with local airports has allowed us to bring our first flight forward by several months," she said.

Jetstar Japan's first base will be at Tokyo Narita Airport, with an initial fleet of three new Airbus A320 aircraft flying to Osaka, Sapporo, Fukuoka and Okinawa.

Fares and schedules have not been announced at this stage, but Jetstar Group ceo Bruce Buchanan said the airline was on track to be the first low cost carrier to fly domestically from the Japanese capital.

"Serving the Japanese customer for the past five years with international services gives us a clear advance in rolling out a domestic network," he said.

"The Jetstar brand is a known quantity in this market...we've built up a lot of trust with Japanese consumers who know that when we say every day low fares, we mean it".

Jetstar's focus on the Japanese market has also been reflected in extra international capacity, with more than 36 additional weekly international flights to and from Japan added by the Jetstar Group since the start of 2012.

More information in tomorrow's Travel Daily.