Japan Airlines has decided to indefinitely suspend two of its eight daily flights from Japan to Hawai'i, starting in October, but state tourism officials say other airlines may add service in those markets.

The airline had said in May that it was mulling suspensions of some flights as part of an overall cost-cutting plan. JAL said in its latest earnings report last week that the company plans to reduce its international capacity by 10 percent, including cutting its single daily flight from Fukuoka to Honolulu and reducing from two to one its daily Honolulu flights from Osaka.

"Right now due to the high cost of fuel and (because) JAL is not making money, we have to review all our flights to see which ones are profitable," said Gilbert Kimura, director of passenger sales and public relations. The airline decided to suspend flights that have not been profitable, Kimura said, but "when things get better, maybe they will come back in operation again."

Kimura said that depends on factors including an improving economy and a decline in terrorist incidents. He said many Japan travelers are opting for more affordable Asia destinations, and that Japan travel agents have complained about a lack of accommodations in Hawai'i, particularly in the peak summer season.

Kimura also said Hawai'i and other resort destinations such as Saipan and Guam have not had enough high-yield business travelers to fill more expensive first- and business-class seats.

State tourism liaison Marsha Wienert said any decrease in air seats from any market is a concern. But she also said she understands there are other airlines looking to initiate or increase service from Japan to Hawai'i, and that the reduction may be a "right-sizing" of the market.

Frank Haas, director of tourism marketing for the Hawaii Tourism Authority, said Northwest Airlines has already increased seats out of Osaka by changing its aircraft.

No one will really know what the impact is until October, "but in talking to the industry, there's a sense that it won't make a major difference, because there should be enough seats," he said. "It's simply a matter of accommodating those passengers that used to fly direct from those markets.

"There's enough demand both in the domestic market and the Japan market that it's not going to mean any major loss overall for Hawai'i. It's just a question of where our visitors will come from, assuming that that demand remains strong. Certainly other markets can pick up the demand, or if there's continued strong demand from Japan, they'll find alternate routes to get here."