On December 18, Jetstar Japan launched its Tokyo/Narita–Kaohsiung route. It is the only non-stop service connecting these two cities operated by a Japanese carrier. A commemorative ceremony was held at Kaohsiung International Airport in southern Taiwan, where the inaugural flight from Narita Airport was welcomed with a water salute.
The airline operates one round trip per day using Airbus A320 aircraft. Flight GK17 departs Tokyo/Narita at 9:25 a.m. and arrives in Kaohsiung at 1:00 p.m. Flight GK18 departs Kaohsiung at 2:00 p.m. and arrives in Tokyo/Narita at 6:30 p.m. The flight time is 4 hours 35 minutes from Tokyo/Narita and 3 hours 30 minutes from Kaohsiung. One-way economy class “Starter” fares start from 12,590 Japanese yen from Tokyo/Narita and from 2,998 New Taiwan dollars from Kaohsiung.
Kaohsiung is Jetstar Japan’s second destination in Taiwan after Taipei/Taoyuan. Including two daily round trips on the Tokyo/Narita–Taipei/Taoyuan and Osaka/Kansai–Taipei/Taoyuan routes, the airline now operates a total of five round trips per day between Japan and Taiwan. On the Tokyo/Narita–Kaohsiung route, five overseas carriers—EVA Air, China Airlines, Tigerair Taiwan, Thai AirAsia, and United Airlines—are already operating.
▲ Jetstar Japan President Masakazu Tanaka
The ceremony held at Kaohsiung International Airport was attended by Masakazu Tanaka, President of Jetstar Japan, Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai, and Kao Min-lin, Director-General of the Kaohsiung City Government Tourism Bureau, among others. In his opening remarks, President Tanaka introduced Kaohsiung by saying, “Kaohsiung is blessed with rich natural scenery, beautiful coastlines, historic culture and arts, and gourmet food, giving it abundant tourism resources. It is also very accessible and a fun city for travelers, and it has ranked first in the tourist destination satisfaction ranking for two consecutive years.” He explained that the airline decided to launch the route because of Kaohsiung’s strong appeal as a tourist destination.
▲ Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai (right) and Kaohsiung City mascot “Kaohsiung Hero Bear”
Mayor Chen, who took the stage together with Kaohsiung’s mascot character “Kaohsiung Hero Bear,” referred to the deep ties between Japan and Taiwan by stating, “Japan was the first to come and help us at the time of the 921 Earthquake in 1999. The people of Japan also made tremendous efforts during the Morakot flood disaster (Typhoon Morakot) in Kaohsiung in 2009.” He extended a warm welcome, saying, “We sincerely welcome Japanese tourists. In Kaohsiung, a city that represents Taiwan, we want you to feel the winter sun and the warmth and energy of the people,” and added, “I hope that in the future we can increase the service to two, then three daily flights.”
According to President Tanaka, although the period from the start of ticket sales on October 23 to the commencement of service was less than two months, bookings have been strong, with the December load factor reaching around 80–90%. Looking at the breakdown by point of origin, roughly 60% of passengers are departing from Japan and about 40% from Kaohsiung, meaning slightly more Japan-originating passengers. He commented, “The schedule is rather Japan-oriented, so compared to the Taipei route, I expect we will see more Japanese passengers on this route.” Compared with the Taipei/Taoyuan route, there is also a slightly higher proportion of senior travelers departing from Japan.
The inaugural flight from Tokyo/Narita carried 179 passengers, while the first flight from Kaohsiung carried 180 passengers.
▲ Flight GK17 arriving at Kaohsiung International Airport as the inaugural service from Tokyo/Narita
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