Gov't OKs New Routes to In-Town Tokyo Airport

Contributing Editor Carl Unger believes that every trip is worth taking. He loves an extended trip to Europe as much as he enjoys exploring the towns and landscape near home. Basically, you'll find him wherever there is good food, fresh air, and plenty of stories to bring home.

Carl has been writing for SmarterTravel since 2005. His travel writing has also appeared on USA Today and the About.com Boston travel guide.

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Delta, American, and Hawaiian have been granted permission to fly into Tokyo’s Haneda Airport. The three airlines were among several vying for the slots, which became available when the U.S. and Japan reached an Open Skies agreement earlier this year. Haneda, which is close to downtown, has been off limits to American carriers since 1978, forcing U.S. airlines to fly into Tokyo’s much further removed Narita airport.

The approved routes are as follows:

Delta: Two routes, from Los Angeles and Detroit
American: One route, from New York (JFK)
Hawaiian: One route, from Honolulu

Hawaiian will begin service October 31, with American coming later, on January 20, 2011. Delta said it will announce schedules in the coming weeks.

United and Continental were also hoping to snag a slot into Haneda. Continental wanted to fly from Newark and Guam, while United hoped to connect via San Francisco.

As Brett Snyder at CrankyFlier noted when the slots were announced, the available flight times don’t exactly allow for great schedules. But the convenience of landing so much closer to downtown will certainly appeal to business travelers tired of the long ride in from Narita.

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