DAVID KNIBB SEATTLE
The controversy over landing rights at Tokyo's Narita airport never ends; it just moves to another phase.
Slot allocations for the second runway, known as runway B, have not ended the jockeying over access to Asia's most coveted gateway. Instead, they set the stage for a renewed battle over the existing runway A, which is used for longer range flights.
Because of its shorter length, runway B is limited to jets no larger than a Boeing 767. When it opens on 18 April it will be used mostly for intra-Asia flights. Shifting shorter flights from runway A to B will open up slots on the longer runway. That will set off another scrum for long-range slots. Traffic is down on transpacific and European routes, but the expectation that it will recover will reignite the slot wars.
Narita has reinstated its use-it-or-lose- it rule, which it suspended after 11 September, posing a dilemma for many airlines. Because of declining traffic, JAL, for example, is permanently dropping its daily Tokyo-Dallas route, but does not want to relinquish those critical slots. To keep or acquire new slots all carriers must commit capacity to routes despite uncertainty over traffic volumes.
Europeans have been openly critical of what they claim is a bias toward US carriers over runway B slots. Yet, some, particularly American Airlines, complain they cannot start Tokyo routes awarded to them due to a lack of slots.
Final numbers will be released later in January, but it appears that the IATA slot conference, in close consultation with Japan's transport ministry and Narita airport, awarded 38% of runway B's slots to Japanese carriers. JAL will add new routes to Xiamen and Guangzhou and more flights to Korea. All Nippon will boost Asian flights by 50%.
Source: Airline Business
