Japan Airlines eyes replacement of 767s, regional jets: executive

JAPAN Airlines (JAL) plans to make a decision in a year or 2 on the replacement of its ageing fleet of Boeing 767s and Embraer regional jets, a senior executive said on Tuesday (Jun 21).

JAL will consider the 787 and Airbus A321neo families as possible replacements for its 767 fleet and the A220 and E2 models for regional jets, said Ross Leggett, the airline’s head of route marketing, international relations and alliances.

“We have got a fairly large 787 fleet, so whether it is an A321 that could then be used quite well within Asia as well, we really haven’t looked at the full decision,” he told Reuters on the sidelines of an airline industry gathering in Doha.

JAL has 31 767s, 18 Embraer E-170s and 14 E-190s in its fleet, according to its website.

Leggett said the airline had returned domestic capacity to 100 per cent of pre-pandemic levels in May, though demand was running at about 85 to 95 per cent of 2019 levels.

In the international market, with China, South Korea and Taiwan effectively closed and Japan capping daily entry numbers, capacity is about 65 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, he added.

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Domestic demand at rival ANA Holdings is about 80 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, said Junichiro Miyagawa, ANA executive vice-president in charge of alliances and international affairs. REUTERS