ANA starts flight services between Narita, KLIA

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KUALA LUMPUR: Japan-based airline, All Nippon Airways (ANA)v on Monday started its non-stop daily flight services between Tokyo Narita and Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

In a joint statement yesterday, ANA and Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) said the new services used a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft.

MAHB’s Chief Operating Officer, Datuk Abd Hamid Mohd Ali, said the economic and cultural ties between Malaysia and Japan continued to strengthen and the arrival of ANA was a testament to that growth.

“We are glad to see that ANA recognises the strong growth opportunities that exist in the Malaysian market and they are anxious to capitalise on them,” he said.

ANA’s Senior Vice President of Sales, Jun Katagiri, said the number of Malaysian visitors to Japan has been rising since the Japanese government eased visa requirements in 2013.

“Also, there are no direct flights between Malaysia and North America, and we are seeing more demand for passengers from both markets transiting in Tokyo.

Katagiri said from September to November, more than 60 per cent of bookings on the Tokyo Narita-KL route came from outside Japan, and about half of that was demand between the US and Asia, exceeding ANA’s expectations.

ANA’s daily service departs from KLIA at 7 am (Malaysian time) and arrives at Tokyo’s Narita Airport at 3 pm (Japan time).

The return flight departs Tokyo at 5.20 pm (Japan time) and arrives in KL at 11.35 pm (Malaysian time).

ANA has also partnered with Malaysia’s Brahim’s Holdings Bhd to offer halal menu options, and all in-flight meals on KL departures to Tokyo supplied from Brahim’s would be halal-certified. — Bernama