Japan Airlines (JAL) celebrated the 60th anniversary of its Tokyo-Seoul route on April 15, with a ceremony at Haneda Airport to coincide with the departure of flight JL93 (Boeing 787-8, registration number: JA831J) from Tokyo/Haneda to Seoul/Gimpo.
JAL initiated the route on April 15, 1964, as the first Tokyo-Seoul service operated by a domestic airline, in joint operation with Korean Air Corporation (at the time). The original equipment used was the Convair 880, offering three round trips on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. The current Tokyo/Haneda-Seoul/Gimpo route operates three round trips daily, with Japan Airlines, All Nippon Airways (ANA), Korean Air, and Asiana Airlines each operating three flights a day.
The Tokyo/Haneda-Seoul/Gimpo route was launched in 1964, just before the normalization of Japan-Korea diplomatic relations with the Japan-Korea Basic Treaty. Kumi Saito, JAL Executive Officer and Manager of Tokyo Airport Branch, in her speech, said, “The movements to start a regular service connecting Japan and Korea date back to 1960. Despite the lack of normalized diplomatic relations, the strong desire to establish the route was recognized by the politics of both countries through long negotiations. I imagine that we were able to overcome several high hurdles with the strong pride of being pioneers connecting Japan with the world.”
In front of gate 114, where flight JL93 was departing, there were displays of a Convair 880 model and timetables from the time of initial operation, and flight attendants wearing the royal blue third-generation uniform made an appearance. Moreover, the active flight attendant cheer dance team “JAL JETS” performed a cheer dance to songs by the Korean girl group ‘TWICE’, including ‘Celebrate’, adding a special touch to the ceremony.
The flight, with a capacity for 206 passengers, was utilized by 201 people (including one infant). It departed Tokyo/Haneda at 3:44 p.m. and took off from Runway A at 4:04 p.m.
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