Tokyo-Shanghai shuttle flights set for October debut

BEIJING (Kyodo) Japan and China agreed Monday to launch a shuttle flight service between Tokyo's Haneda airport and Shanghai's Hongqiao airport, possibly around Oct. 8, according to the transport ministry.

The agreement was reached during a meeting in Beijing between visiting Land, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Tetsuzo Fuyushiba and Yang Guoqing, deputy director of the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

"The linking of Haneda and Hongqiao airports, both dedicated to domestic flight services, marks an important milestone in the bilateral history of aviation," Fuyushiba said at a news conference after the meeting.

In April, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao agreed on the launch of the flights possibly within this year so the two countries can mark the 35th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic ties with the service's debut.

Since then, Japanese and Chinese aviation officials have negotiated with the aim of operating four round-trip flights a day between the two airports.

Japan Airlines Corp. and All Nippon Airways Co. are expected to each operate a single round-trip flight a day, sources said.

Fuyushiba and Yang also agreed for the two countries' airlines to begin preparing extra charter flights to fly passengers between Haneda and Beijing during next summer's Olympics.

The accord on the Haneda-Shanghai shuttle service is another step toward linking the three key airports of Tokyo, Shanghai and Seoul with shuttle flights.

Japan and South Korea have been operating eight round-trip shuttle flights a day between Haneda and Seoul's Gimpo airport. South Korea and China have been holding talks to set up shuttle flights between Shanghai and Seoul.