JAL Group reports New Year Vacation Period Traffic Results

During the Japanese “New Year’’ vacation period, from December 28, 2005 to January 9, 2006 the total number of passengers traveling on JAL Group international passenger routes was down 5.1% on the same vacation period last year. However, the total number of passengers traveling on JAL Group domestic passenger routes was up 1% .

Internationally, JAL recorded healthy increases in passenger traffic on Transpacific and Korea routes: up respectively by 4.2%, and 4.3% when compared to the same period last year. Even though travel demand to Indonesia remained low during this period, Southeast Asia routes showed signs of recovery with passenger traffic up by 1.6% on last year. The seat load factor on transpacific routes was particularly high at 91.2%.

The reduction in the number of JAL flights serving Honolulu and Guam, and the suspension of services to Saipan in October last year, accounted for the decrease in passenger traffic on JAL flights to Pacific tourist destinations, and resulted in high seat load factors on Hawaii, Oceania and Guam/Saipan routes: 85%, 87.1% and 89.4% respectively.

Due to lingering concern resulting from anti-Japanese demonstrations in China earlier last year, JAL saw a 4.1% decrease in passenger traffic to China, compared to last year, much less than the 12.1% decrease JAL initially forecast.

JAL Group’s international seat load factor was 75.8%: up 1.2 points on the same period last year.

A total of 1,647,708 passengers traveled domestically within Japan on JAL Group airlines: 1% up on last year. JAL Group operated an additional 76 flights to meet demand on popular domestic routes.

Domestic Japan seat load factor was 62.8%: up 2.3 points on the same period last year.

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