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‘More slots available for Japan-Saipan flights’
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Posted on Mar 30 2005
Numerous slots are still available under the U.S.-Japan aviation agreement for airlines interested in flying between Japan and the Northern Marianas, Commonwealth Ports Authority executive director Carlos Salas said.
Originally signed in 1952, the bilateral agreement was amended in 1998 to lift all restrictions on the number of flights operated and points served between the United States and Japan by all airlines considered “incumbent” carriers. These carriers include Japan Airlines, All Nippon Airways, United Airlines, Northwest Airlines, and Federal Express.
Meanwhile, the so-called “non-incumbent” carriers such as American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Continental Airlines, and Hawaiian Airlines, were allowed to operate only up to 146 roundtrip flights between the two signatory countries.
But in an interview, Salas maintained that the restrictions under the bilateral aviation pact should be the least of the local tourism industry’s concerns.
“There is so much capacity right now that is unused under the bilateral agreement you can actually have [non-incumbent] airlines including Continental and Hawaiian Airlines applying and starting all these flights,” Salas said. “Now it’s just a matter of whether or not there are passengers to be transported, and identifying the airlines and the aircraft to do the flights.”
Marianas Visitors Authority managing director Vicky Benavente said earlier that the flight restrictions were mentioned during one of the meetings between CNMI and Japan tourism officials in Tokyo last month.
Led by Gov. Juan N. Babauta, the Tokyo trip was organized in an effort to woo airlines to increase service from Japan to the Northern Marianas.
MVA data show that the number of seats available for Saipan-bound passengers from Japan have decreased by 18 percent over the last year—from 492,373 seats in 2004 to only 403,650 this year.
