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Vanilla Air

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Vanilla Air
IATA ICAO Callsign
JW VNL VANILLA
Founded1 November 2013
Commenced operations20 December 2013
Ceased operations26 October 2019 (merged with Peach Aviation)
Operating basesTokyo-Narita
Fleet size6
Destinations11
Parent companyAll Nippon Airways
HeadquartersNarita International Airport, Narita, Chiba Prefecture, Japan
Key peopleKatsuya Goto (President)
EmployeesTotal 759 employees (as of August 1st, 2018)
Websitewww.vanilla-air.com/en

Vanilla Air Inc. (バニラ・エア株式会社, Banira Ea Kabushiki Kaisha) was a Japanese airline. It was owned by All Nippon Airways. The main office of the company was in Narita International Airport in Narita, Chiba Prefecture.[1] The airline closed in October 2019 after it merged with Peach Aviation.

History

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A Vanilla Air Airbus A320 taxiing at New Chitose Airport, Japan. (2014)

In June 2013, AirAsia said it would stop working with AirAsia Japan. This made the company a subsidiary of Air Nippon Airways (ANA).[2] In August of that year, AirAsia Japan said that it would still fly under its current name through 26 October 2013. It would change its name to Vanilla Air starting 1 November 2013. Vanilla Air would start with two aircraft. The company would grow to ten aircraft by 2015. It would have flight within Japan and to other countries.[3] All of AirAsia Japan employees were to now work for Vanilla Air. The airline would focus on flying to resort places. Over time, they would start flying longer paths after a focus on short-haul routes.[4]

AirAsia Japan aircraft was moved to Indonesia AirAsia. Vanilla Air only had two aircraft at the start. Vanilla Air kept working from Narita International Airport, but because it only had 2 aircraft, the AirAsia Japan hub at Chubu Centrair International Airport was closed. However.

At the end of July, the Nikkei reported that the new AirAsia Japan would focus on the popular resort markets of Sapporo, Okinawa, Honolulu, Guam and Saipan.[5] A later report said that 70% of its would be around the world. The report said said that they would make better use of slots at Narita Airport. It would do this by having flights late at night and and in the early morning.[6] The increasing to 10 aircraft would make the airline more competitive with Jetstar Japan, a Narita-based airline partly owned by Japan Airlines.[7]

Vanilla Air made its first flights from Narita to Okinawa and Taipei on 20 December 2013.[8] Vanilla Air introduced the "Vaniller's Pass" in December 2014. It was a one-month pass good for travel on its Tokyo-Amami path. The pass was aimed at people going to the islands for surfing and diving, but people used the passes for other purposes such as caring for family members.[9]

In its first years of work, Vanilla Air a shortage of pilots. This caused the company to lose money.. In 2016, low oil prices and an increase of tourism to Japan led to Vanilla Air making a profit.

In June 2017, Vanilla Air was criticised after a disabled passenger flying from Amami to Osaka had to crawl up a set of stairs to enter an aircraft. The passenger, Hideto Kojima, was told he would not be allowed to board the plane if he could not climb the stairs without help.[10][11]

On 22 March 2018, All Nippon Airways sid it would combine Peach Aviation and Vanilla Air. This would start in the second half of the FY2018 and to be done by the end of FY2019. Vanilla would become a part of Peach, The new company was planned to have more than 50 aircraft by 2020. This was up from 35 aircraft before the merger. The company would have more than 50 routes. It was expected to have a ¥150 ($1.34) billion in income and a 10% operating profit for FY2020.[12] Vanilla Air closed on 26 October 2019.

Fleet

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Vanilla Air took delivery of its first A320 aircraft on 14 November 2013.[13] The Vanilla Air fleet had 6 Airbus A320-200 aircraft as of October 2019, at time of merger into Peach Aviation[14][15]

References

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  1. ↑ "Corporate Profile." (Archive) Vanilla Air. Retrieved on 19 January 2014. "Headquarters Narita International Airport 2PTB, Chiba, JAPAN" - Address in Japanese (Archive): "成田国際空港 第2旅客ターミナル内"
  2. ↑ ANA、LCCを一本化 エアアジアとの合弁解消へ. The Nikkei. June 10, 2013.
  3. ↑ ＬＣＣ新社名「バニラ・エア」に エアアジア・ジャパン. The Nikkei. 20 August 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  4. ↑ "AirAsia Japan rebranded 'Vanilla Air'". Agence-France Presse. 20 August 2013. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
  5. ↑ ＡＮＡ、格安航空で攻勢 ハワイや台湾に観光路線. The Nikkei. 31 July 2013. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  6. ↑ 新ＬＣＣバニラ・エア、国際観光路線で巻き返し ２機体制の増強課題. The Nikkei. 2 September 2013. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
  7. ↑ ＡＮＡ系ＬＣＣバニラ・エア、「３年内に単年度黒字に」. The Nikkei. 21 August 2013. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
  8. ↑ ＡＮＡ系格安航空、バニラ・エア就航 社名一新し再起. The Nikkei. 20 December 2013. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  9. ↑ Kohase, Yusuke (2 February 2015). バニラエア、ソウル線3月運休へ 新路線「現時点で計画なし」. Aviation Wire (in Japanese). Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  10. ↑ "Japanese airline forces disabled man to crawl aboard". BBC News. 28 June 2017.
  11. ↑ "Japan carrier apologizes to disabled man over tarmac stairs". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved 2017-06-28.
  12. ↑ "Peach Aviation and Vanilla Air Unite Together to become the leading LCC in Asia" (Press release). ANA. March 22, 2018.
  13. ↑ Yoshikawa, Tadayuki (14 November 2013). バニラ・エア、白装束のA320初号機が成田到着. Aviation Wire (in Japanese). Retrieved 18 November 2013.
  14. ↑ "Vanilla Air Fleet Details and History". Planespotters.net. Retrieved November 9, 2018.
  15. ↑ http://www.vanilla-air.com/en/service/fleet-and-seatmap

Other websites

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vanilla Air.
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