Vanilla Air Expands Fleet, Routes

Alain Charpentier - TLS - F-WWIY - By Jeremy Torr, ATW Daily News


Japan's All Nippon Airways (ANA) low-cost subsidiary (LCC) Vanilla Air has taken delivery of the first of three new Airbus A320-200s from Singapore-based lessor BOC Aviation. The new aircraft, which are part of a region-wide expansion program, will add to its eight existing A320s. The Tokyo-based LCC said it intends to grow its fleet to 25 aircraft by 2020.

In 2013, ANA rebranded AirAsia Japan as Vanilla Air.
Vanilla Air's existing network covers domestic destinations such as Sapporo, Naha and Amami Oshima and also serves limited international destinations, including Taipei and Kaohsiung in Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

Following increases in Japanese passenger traffic and better financial results from its parent, the carrier said it will expand its domestic and international network with a focus on Asian routes from its base at Tokyo Narita International Airport.

It is also adding a new Kansai, Osaka-Taipei route to its schedule at the end of April, flagging a move to secondary and less-contested routes in the northeast Asia region.
Vanilla Air president Tomonori Ishii said the LCC plans to begin locally, but would expand overseas as it grows.

"We will fly to resort destinations, beginning with short-haul services, but will eventually expand to mid- and long-haul services," he said.

The company has also indicated it would look at flying outside its immediate region using one-stop flights to potential destinations such as Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam from 4Q 2016.
This could potentially open up network expansion to secondary destinations such as U.S.-administered Pacific islands of Guam and Saipan, plus Filipino destinations that attract high levels of tourism during the Japanese winter.