While Kix serves the second largest market in Japan emcompassing Osaka, Kobe and Kyoto, for some reasons or another, flights out of KIX do not sell well in premier classes. Sure, they have a high load-factor in economy class but I have been told there are so few full-fare first and business class passengers out of KIX that premier cabin sensitive carriers like BA dropped out of KIX immediately after the opening of the non-stop LHR-KIX flight. When KIX opened, UA had 5 flights daily; to SFO, LAX, HNL, ORD and SEL. Now only SFO flight remains...
Now ANA is dropping all the direct European flights out of KIX and also transferring all the Asian regional routes out of KIX to a new low-cost subsidiary called AIR JAPAN. First of AIR JAPAN flights will be twice daily KIX-SEL service as of next spring.
WEll,it seems that the airport is REALLY sinking deep....
[This message has been edited by Kaoru Kanetaka (edited 10-12-2000).]