American Airlines will launch daily service from Tokyo Haneda Airport to Los Angeles International Airport in the fourth quarter.
Just months after Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) fought to keep the route, the airline announced it will discontinue service on Sept. 30. Routes into Haneda are rare because U.S.-Japan trade agreements only allow four flights per day. Many business travelers prefer Haneda because of its proximity to downtown Tokyo.
But Delta has determined it can’t make the Seattle to Haneda route work for daily service.
“Delta has determined that its Seattle-Haneda service is not viable under the current regulatory and market conditions, and therefore will suspend service,” the airline said in a statement.
Delta passengers who have flights booked to Haneda after Sept. 30 will not be accommodated.
On Oct. 1, the route reverts back to the U.S. Department of Transportation, who will reallocate the slot pair (takeoff and landing) to Fort Worth-based American (Nasdaq: AAL)
American had been granted back-up authority so that if Delta ever gave up the route, American would get first dibs.
“We are excited to return to Haneda,” American spokesman Matt Miller said. “It’s great news for our customers.”
Delta wanted to fly the route on a seasonal basis rather than every day but American and other airlines complained that the slot wasn’t being fully utilized. In March, the DOT ruled that Delta could keep the route if it provided daily, year-round service. If Delta fell below a certain threshold, the DOT would take the route away.
On June 17, Delta sent a letter to the DOT saying it was “not commercially feasible” to fly to Haneda route daily year-round.
Delta notes that it doesn’t have a Japanese airline partner to help with connectivity within the country and region.
In the letter, Delta urges the U.S. government to push for a full opening of Haneda to “allow fair and equal access” by U.S. carriers.
Every U.S. carrier that serves Japan now has one of the Haneda slots.
Though Delta is giving up the Seattle-Haneda route, it will continue flying its own LAX to Haneda flight. The daily nonstop flight from Seattle to Tokyo-Narita will continue, too.
American previously had a route from New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport to Haneda but the timing of the landing in on the East Coast occurred during curfew hours, Miller said.
