Dragonair to start Tokyo service
Reuters
HK's Dragonair to start Tokyo service in April
Tuesday January 20, 12:52 am ET
HONG KONG, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Dragonair, Hong Kong's second-largest airline, said on Tuesday it will begin flights to Tokyo in April, heating up competition with rival Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd
Dragonair, which is 43 percent owned by state-backed China National Aviation Corp said it will initially offer five flights a week between Hong Kong and Tokyo's Narita International Airport starting April 2.
It won the rights to fly to the Japanese capital in late 2002.
The route is the third busiest out of Hong Kong, after Taipei and Bangkok.
Dragonair also competes with Cathay on flights to Taipei and more recently to Bangkok. Before that, the two had largely observed a policy of one carrier per route, with Dragonair operating most flights to China and Cathay taking the international routes.
Cathay challenged that status quo last year when, seeking to re-enter the China market after a 13-year absence, it won the right to fly to Beijing.
Cathay now offers limited services to the Chinese capital, but hopes to win broader access in talks set to take place next month between the two governments.
Dragonair said its Tokyo service will operate on all days except Wednesday and Saturday.
"Tokyo is one of the top five destination cities from Hong Kong," said Dragonair Chief Executive Officer Stanley Hui. "We believe this is a good year to launch the service as Japan recently unveiled its 'Visit Japan Campaign' with the aim of doubling the number of tourists who visit the country by 2010."
The Hong Kong to Tokyo route is already highly competitive with 168 flights a week, operated by Cathay, Japan Airlines, All Nippon Airways, Northwest Airlines and United Airlines, according to the South China Morning Post.