Virgin Australia is hoping to secure a lucrative landing slot at Tokyo Haneda Airport so it can launch nonstop Tokyo flights from Brisbane.
The airline applied for authorisation with the International Air Services Commission and plans to operate the Brisbane-Tokyo Haneda route with Airbus A330-200 jets.
"The Japan market represents an excellent strategic fit for Virgin Australia, as a destination with a strong growth outlook for both inbound and outbound travel, and which appeals to our leisure and corporate customers," Virgin Australia stated in its submission to the IASC.
Japan’s ministry of land, infrastructure, transport and tourism released four new slots for flights to and from Australia – one each for Japan’s big two JAL and ANA – and two for Aussie carriers.
The slots are for daytime services as Japan hopes to boost routes and flight frequencies ahead of expected high demand for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
"The new capacity to Haneda provides an excellent opportunity for a new entrant to successfully break into the market and establish a strong position for itself," the Virgin Australia submission added.
"An allocation of capacity to Virgin Australia will therefore enable us not just to compete with the Qantas Group and Japan Airlines, but to effectively compete."
Virgin would cement its entry in the Japan market by codesharing with ANA.
