Japan Airlines (JAL) celebrated the start of nonstop service between Doha – Hamad International Airport (DOH) and Tokyo Haneda International Airport (HND). This is the first Japanese airline to offer nonstop service to and from the Middle East, and it operates under a code-share agreement with Qatar Airways, another oneworld® alliance member. Through its cooperation with Qatar Airways, the latest route will allow consumers to travel easily to Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and South America.

JL059, Japan Airlines’ Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, took off from HND with practically full capacity. The airplane arrived at DOH this morning on time and was greeted by a water cannon salute. On arrival at DOH, Hamad International Airport, along with Qatar Airways and Japan Airlines, held a ceremony that included a ribbon cutting with local dignitaries.

Ross Leggett, Japan Airlines Managing Executive Officer, Route Marketing Senior Vice President, commented on the historic route launch, saying:

Our new Doha service is the first direct flight from the Middle East operated by a Japanese airline. It perfectly complements JAL’s global network and enables customers to seamlessly connect from Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and South America through our partnership with Qatar Airways, a member of the same oneworld alliance as JAL, “The demand for business and leisure travel from Doha to Asia continues to grow, and we are excited to offer JAL’s renowned five-star service and unique approach to hospitality to even more travellers.

Sujata Suri, Senior Vice President of Finance and Procurement at Hamad International Airport, said:

We are thrilled to welcome Japan Airlines to the Middle East through its renowned hub in Doha. The launch of Japan Airlines’ daily flights from Tokyo Haneda to Hamad International Airport is a landmark achievement and a testament to the flourishing partnership between both Qatar and Japan. Combining Japan Airlines’ latest launch with Qatar Airways’ recent resumption to Osaka, is projected to result in a 50% increase in weekly flight frequency between Qatar and Japan, which underscores Hamad International Airport’s commitment to advancing global travel and enhancing passenger experiences.

Qatar Airways’ Chief Commercial Officer, Thierry Antinori, stated:

We are very pleased to welcome our oneworld partner Japan Airlines to Doha and look forward to further building our successful relationship for the worldwide customers flying from and to Japan and North Asia. It is wonderful to see how our strategy to leverage Hamad International Airport’s position as a global five-star rated hub, continues to yield results and we hope to continue to attract even more partner airlines to this major gateway and stopover destination in the future.

Japan Airlines’ DOH-HND nonstop service will be operated daily by the airline’s JAL SKY SUITE 787 (Boeing 787-9) aircraft. JAL Business Class features 52 award-winning JAL SKY SUITE â…¢ totally flat seats, while JAL Economy Class has 151 JAL SKY WIDER seats that have also earned industry accolades. JAL’s latest in-flight entertainment system, Magic-VI, is available throughout the aircraft, with touchscreen monitors installed in each seat. In addition, aircraft have in-flight Wi-Fi (for a charge).

The JAL Group will continue to take on new challenges in order to increase customer convenience, network performance, and product and service quality.

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