Japan Airlines' Generous Ticket Flexibility Due To A350 Accident

Yes. It’s fine to change your ticket if there’s open availability to the a350 off an existing ticket on the 777-300. Nothing is being taken advantage of. The tragedy was out of your control.

Public safety is taken very seriously in Japan, unlike in neighboring countries like Korea and China. To a Japanese, it makes complete sense that they are doing this.

If it’s not a JL ticket the policy of the ticketing carrier applies.

IT"S OK TO MAKE SUCH CHANGES> IT"S JUST GOOD CUSTOMER SERVICE> WHEN JAL"S 747 CRASHED IN THE 1980'S THEY LOST A LOT OF TRAFFIC AS PEOPLE FLEW ANA INSTEAD> JAL STARTED THE SAFETY PROMOTION CENTER AFTER THAT CRASH> IT IS A TRAINING FACILITY TO REMIND EMPLOYEES TO PRACTICE SAFETY BUT IS ALSO OPEN TO THE PUBLIC AS A MUSEUM TO SEE PART OF THE WRECKAGE>

I AM NOT SHOUTING BUT MY KEYBOARD IS PLAYING TRICKS EVEN THOUGH THE CAPS LOCK IS OFF>

I supposed HND's capacity is hampered until they can clean up and reopen Rwy 34R. Shedding some load by offering free cancellations to passengers seem the best solution. HND also handles a lot of domestic traffic and short-term trips (that can easily become "in vain") that can be offloaded to the Shinkansen trains, so refund is the best way.

Irrelevant. You could have said "Japan takes public safety seriously" but instead felt the need to say that about Korea and China. Japan took public safety seriously yet two planes collided on a runway?

Either a weeb or a healthy dash of Japanese xenophobia and pride

300 high school kids die in South Korea on a ferry, and nobody bats an eyelash. 100 in a Halloween crush. Hear that? Pin drop.

Japan has no operation-related deaths on the Shinkansen in its history. We say nothing.

Meanwhile, they treated passengers who were directly impacted by the accident pretty poorly. I am currently sitting in a JAL lounge departing ITM back to the US finally after being left stranded in Osaka and then many struggles getting it rebooked after three days.

My original flight to Haneda connecting to US was in air when the accident happened and was diverted to Osaka. They told us at the airport that they would figure it out and bused us to a nearby hotel for the night. I only woke up to find a letter slipped under my door saying they couldn’t do anything since it was an award ticket booked by American and asked me to contact American directly. First it was entirely their fault and I don’t believe they couldn’t do anything. Even if they couldn’t do anything, they should have let me know earlier. It was really disappointing to treat passengers like “go figure yourself” in a situation like this.

Anywhere with human beings, there are bound to be accidents.

There were huge public outcries in Korea after those accidents, resulting in years of extensive investigation, arrests, etc. On what grounds are you claiming that nobody batted an eyelash? You are just making a subjective comment in your sad attempt to back up your initial claim.

Korea's KTX also had no operation-related deaths in its history since it was launched in 2003. So it is not just the Shinkansen that did not have operation-related deaths. Then I guess Korea and Japan are the same? What's your logic here?

You probably shouldn't go into any profession requiring logical thinking.

Is it because they think people are afraid to fly? I assumed perhaps a runway at Haneda was still out of commission and it was disrupting their flight schedule or something like that.

No doubt JAL has considered people will take advantage of this flexibility regardless of why; I wouldn't lose sleep over it. By having a simple blanket approach, they are showing confidence and competence. That's far more beneficial to allay any public fear.

I was booked to fly JAL in J SYD-NRT then HND-ORD return in May 2020. Was extremely impressed with the ease of obtaining a full refund when COVID hit after just 10 mins on the phone. Maybe they’re just a good corporate citizen?

Yeah, it was “entirely their fault” that another plane happened to be on the runway.

I suspect they are offering this to avoid IDB due to weight restrictions departing from the shorter Runway 05 at HND. Many flights are now zeroed out for new bookings, so if JAL has any availability it means the flight is lightly loaded. It could be a way to gently nudge people onto those flights.

Well I don't think so,
Haneda has 4 runways
The accident runway -- 3,350m
The parallel runway -- 3,000m
Then the 2 others -- both are 2,500m

34l/16R being 3,000m long can accommodate all commercial aircraft at MTOW.
Don't forget Haneda is at sea level and Tokyo is really a hot city.

Well I don't think so,
Haneda has 4 runways
The accident runway -- 3,350m
The parallel runway -- 3,000m
Then the 2 others -- both are 2,500m

34l/16R being 3,000m long can accommodate all commercial aircraft at MTOW.
Don't forget Haneda is at sea level and Tokyo is really a hot city.

This response by JAL is unsurprising considering Japan and Japanese corporate culture. While many comments here take a cynical "western" view of the issue, companies in Japan often respond to a crisis by making these kind of customer accommodations.

34L can't do takeoffs and winds at HND are usually from the north, so takeoffs have been going to the shorter 05 since the accident.

Just tried to change a flight I have coming up on JAL that I booked using AS miles. Alaska told me they can't do anything and told me they haven't heard such policy to change.

I imagine those who have flights on JL that they booked directly through JL might have better luck but wouldn't count on any changes happening if you booked through another airline.

Awesome.

Now tell us about the last time S.Korea "forgot" to put an independent power source on the cooling system for a nuclear power plant, resulting in only the second Level-7 INE radiation disaster in world history.

We'll wait.

Airlines will try to screw you at any chance they get, so when an opportunity arises to get one over on an airline, take it!

Today the winds have shifted and they are taking off from the longer 16R and landing on the shorter runways, which should help albeit temporarily.

Only if it’s a JL ticket. If not the issuing carrier conditions apply.

What do you mean Tokyo is a hot city ? Currently about 12c

IATA 735d it’s the operating carrier’s responsibility irrespective of who ticketed.

You can still claim for damages under the Montreal convention MC99 for expenses to get to your destination and any accommodation etc.

However you can’t blame them for the problems. They were doing their best under the circumstances given the 1000s of people affected.

How can they let you know earlier ? Crystal ball ? Some of your comments are ridiculously stupid.

Why not try calling JL directly?

I definitely remember hearing about airlines in the 80s/90s doing this right after a crash. I think it also happened in the wake of the MAX crashes?

The runway is reopening on Monday so this will be a moot point soon.

@Watson…I can guarantee you that your company screws everyone over any chance they get as well.

Not understanding the fuss here.

Seems to be a pretty nice gesture from them. Could there be strategic rationale behind it as well? Sure. But they are actually offering a blanket policy that may or may not hurt them a little financially, and may actually leave some people with a good impression of the company. I have never flown them, and don't know much about them at all, but I think it reads as a good decision overall.

Accidents happen. This does not mean that Japan is somehow lax in their safety protocols. What a generous offer of hospitality. JA is trying to make the customers feel safe and welcome after such a terrible event. The accident could have been much, much worse with greater loss of life and injury. Good for Japan Airlines.

How true. Well said.

I tried to rebook my itinerary as per the advisory and the customer care team is saying that reservations can be changed only for a range of -1 to +3 days of the original travel date.

Wonder if I could get a reroute onto the nonstop from JFK instead of flying via ORD.

Does this also apply to mileage?

You never let a serious crisis go to waste. And what I mean by that it's an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before.

Rahm Emanuel

You never let a serious crisis go to waste. And what I mean by that it's an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before.

Rahm Emanuel

You have to understand the Japanese to understand the policy. This is just like a traffic accident in which you're ar fault. It's called sorry money, loosely translated

I was not able to do this on a AA issued JL flight. Must be JL ticketed.