Alaska Airlines starts direct flights from Seattle to Tokyo
Alaska Airlines starting direct Seattle to Tokyo flights on Monday
Starting Monday, Alaska Airlines will start offering direct flights from SeaTac airport in Seattle to Tokyo, Japan.
SEATTLE - Getting to Asia from Seattle will be a lot quicker and easier starting Monday. Alaska Airlines will start offering nonstop flights from Seattle to Tokyo.
This is not going to be the first flight that goes direct from the United States to Japan, but it is for the Pacific Northwest. So, it is going to get a lot more convenient and a lot faster for people to get from Seattle over to Tokyo.
Big picture view:
The daily nonstop flights between Seattle and Tokyo Narita Airport are going to start today. The Tokyo Narita Airport is well known not only for travelers looking to go on vacation, but also for business.
Alaska Airlines says it is committing to reaching 12 international destinations by 2030. Alaska's Seattle hub is actually the largest airline hub here on the west coast, serving more than 100 nonstop destinations across North America.
Now, this all comes after Alaska Airlines just merged with Hawaiian Airlines last year. Alaska Air says the new Tokyo service allows them to improve how many people they can serve between Hawaii and also Japan.
The airline says it is a market that has seen a slightly weaker leisure travel demand after the pandemic, so this may improve things a bit. Anyone flying from the Pacific Northwest to Japan will be on a Hawaiian Airlines Airbus A330, and the total flight time for that is just under 10-and-a-half hours.
What's next:
The airline will also add nonstop service from Seattle to Seoul Incheon, South Korea, and that is actually scheduled to start earlier than expected. The first flight for that is going to be on Sept. 12.
There's a lot going on here at SeaTac airport. FOX 13 has been reporting for weeks about how REAL ID is now in effect. What that means is, if you have not gone to the Department of Licensing to upgrade your driver's license yet to either a real ID or an enhanced license, you are going to need your passport in order to fly.
Now, they are going to give you a little bit of some grace. TSA does say that you can still fly if you don't have either of those things, but just be ready to maybe divert to another line for more security checks.
The Source: Information in this story came from original FOX 13 Seattle reporting and Alaska-Hawaiian Airlines.
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