ZIPAIR, officially ZIPAIR Tokyo Inc., is a low-cost airline, headquartered in Tokyo Narita Airport. The airline is a wholly owned subsidiary of Japan Airlines; it was founded in 2018 as a provisional company, and was initially expected to commence operations on 14 May 2020. ZIPAIR plans to operate medium/long-haul international flights with Narita's Terminal 1 North Wing as its hub. It was, however, announced in April 2020 that the commencement of the operation would be postponed due to the pandemic of COVID-19. In May, ZIPAIR announced it would start cargo-only flights of Narita - Bangkok as its initial route on 3 June 2020, whilst passenger flights are still suspended.
History
Japan Airlines announced in May 2018 a plan for launching new international low-cost carrier business during 2020 summer schedule, which was to compete with other Asian carriers, when JAL gradually noticed other LCCs attempting to expand into the Japanese market. JAL established a wholly owned subsidiary for preparing the business, T.B.L. Co., Ltd., in July that year. It was estimated that they would commence operation just in time for the 2020 Summer Olympics. In March 2019, the brand of the new carrier was named ZIPAIR, referencing the words "Zip", which represents speed, and "ZIP Code". Accordingly, T.B.L. was renamed "ZIPAIR Tokyo Inc." ZIPAIR planned to commence flights to Bangkok and Seoul on 14 May and 1 July in 2020 respectively. It was reported that they also aimed at expanding Asian destinations as well as commencing United States routes by 2021. In 2020, a novel coronavirus spread globally and many countries closed their borders to foreigners. Thailand banned all incoming passenger flights from 4 April, and the Japanese government introduced strict border enforcement measures. Under these circumstances, ZIPAIR announced on 9 April that its launch of service would be postponed until further notice. On 21 May, it was announced that they had submitted an application to the Japanese authority for the launch of cargo flights between Tokyo and Bangkok to meet the needs for air cargo during the suspension of passenger flights. The service commenced on 3 June 2020, making use of their Boeing 787-8 aircraft. Also, ZIPAIR has officially applied for the Narita - Honolulu route and is looking to commence the service from the winter schedule in 2020.
Destinations
Fleet
, the ZIPAIR fleet consists of the following aircraft:
ZIPAIR plans to increase two 787-8 aircraft every year for a while by leasing them from JAL.
