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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Tuesday, October 8, 2002

JAL reports 7.7% drop in global passengers

Bloomberg News Service

Japan Airlines Co., which last week merged with Japan Air System Co., said international passengers in August fell 7.7 percent from a year earlier as travelers preferred to take vacations at home.

Overseas traffic fell to 1.34 million people, Japan Airlines said in a statement.

The airline said it carried 2.39 million passengers on domestic routes, 0.4 percent more than a year ago.

Japan Airlines and other carriers are suffering as last year's terrorist attacks in the United States are still taking their toll on international travel demand.

In August, Japan Airlines said it will cut one of its four daily flights from Tokyo to Honolulu as demand from Japanese tourists continues to sag.

The airline will cut the number of its flights to the Islands from 75 to 68 each week from Oct. 1 through March 31.

Japan Airlines hopes the takeover of domestic rival Japan Air System will increase sales at home, helping shield it from the possibility of a continued slump in global demand as travelers fear war in Iraq.