Nok Air Plans Japanese Routes

4th Jul 2014

Japan has been one of the most favorite overseas destinations for Thai tourists. Last year, the government of Japan lifted the visa requirement for Thai tourists who want to visit the country for 15 days or less.

Nok Air sees a huge opportunity in this sector and is now planning to launch its first long-haul service from Bangkok to Tokyo, the capital of Japan.

Before the removal of the visa requirement, Thai tourists had to apply for a tourist visa before they can enter Japan regardless of the length of their visit.

With the visa-free entry for Thai tourists, Japan is now one of the most visited countries by Thai travelers. They can now fly to the Land of the Rising Sun much easier and make their trips as often as they can. In fact, since the abolition of tourist visa for short-stay visit, Thai travelers to Japan have surged.

This year, it is projected that Thai travelers to Japan will breach the 850,000 mark and 1 million by 2015.

Nok Air wants to take advantage of this prospect, as it will be able to serve its countrymen who frequent to the East Asian country mostly for leisure.

Since the implementation of a visa-free entry to Japan, major airlines from Japan and Thailand increased their capacity, especially now that slots for international carriers are released at the highly-restricted Haneda Airport, the other international gateway of Tokyo.

Thai Airways International and Japan's All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines launched additional flight frequency to both directions between Thailand and Japan, especially Bangkok and Tokyo. Other carriers are now starting or will start their own direct long-haul service between Bangkok and Tokyo.

NokScoot, the long-haul unit of Nok Air, will soon launch its own direct transcontinental flights between Bangkok and Tokyo's Narita International Airport.

Nok Air is a low-cost unit of Thai Airways Intl., while Scoot is a budget subsidiary of Singapore Airlines.

If its plan pushes through, it would be NokScoot's first long-haul international route.

Nok Air currently flies to Yangon from its Bangkok hub and from Mae Sot to Mawlamyine, also in Myanmar. It has just confirmed its soon-to-be-launched route, Bangkok-Ho Chi Minh and Bangkok-Hanoi.

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