On November 12, 2016, Japan Airlines (JAL) celebrates 50 years of service to and from New York's JFK International Airport. JAL launched its New York service (flight numbers: JL001/002) on November 12, 1966, with the DC-8 "SETO" (configuration number: JA8015). The inaugural outbound flight carried 58 invited guests, 52 passengers and 8 flight attendants, from Tokyo (via Honolulu and San Francisco) to New York.

The New York roundtrip service initially started with a frequency of twice weekly, and increased to five flights a week in March 1967, in connection with JAL's inauguration of round-the-world service. The opening of the route was significant as it served as a bridge to transport both passengers and cargo to and from the U.S. East Coast. JAL increased its Tokyo (Narita) = New York (JFK) route from 7 to 14 weekly round-trip flights on March 30, 2014, to meet the growing demand.

Japan Airlines expresses its sincerest gratitude to all our customers and partners who have supported the New York route. We will continue to strive to provide unpralleled service and to become the most preferred airline in the world.


October, 2016
Japan Airlines New York