Start-up carrier Zipair Tokyo has applied to launch with cargo-only flights between Tokyo Narita and Bangkok Suvarnabhumi airports from 3 June.
The cargo-only service will be operated four times weekly “until the launch of passenger services”. Zipair will also codeshare with parent company Japan Airlines (JAL) on cargo flights.
“Based on the global impact of Covid-19, Zipair Tokyo’s launch of passenger flights has been temporarily postponed,” the company says.
“As airlines continue to suspend flights, the need for air cargo services is in demand. As such, Zipair Tokyo announced the plan to launch cargo-only flights utilising the carrier’s Boeing 787-8 aircraft between the two countries,” it says.
Zipair will announce the start of passenger services at a future date, it says.
Zipair was intended as JAL’s low-cost carrier subsidiary, and previously indicated plans to operate a fleet of 10 Boeing 787s by 2024, transferred from the parent company. It had planned to launch in May, first with Bangkok flights, followed by a Seoul service from July.
In February, Zipair indicated that it was positioning itself as a mid- to long-haul carrier, with plans for transpacific flights.
Cirium fleets data shows Zipair’s fleet comprises two 787-8s, transferred from JAL between December and February.
