Japan airlines cuts cargo flights

Tokyo - Japan Airlines (JAL) plans to shelve its cargo operations between Tokyo and New York, and lower the number of Tokyo-Los Angeles cargo services next year, in a bid to cope with higher fuel prices and a slowdown in the US economy.

JAL said it will discontinue its Tokyo-New York cargo operations, which currently number seven a week, including one via Chicago. It also plans to cut the number of weekly cargo flights between Tokyo and Los Angeles to five from six.

"The airline is currently facing a tough environment, particularly in terms of its North American freighter business," the airline said in a statement. "Even though the price of fuel has stabilised, it has remained at a very high level. Furthermore, the business outlook, centring on North America, remains gloomy."

JAL instead will concentrate its freight resources on two destinations in North America, Chicago and Los Angeles. The number of cargo flights to North America will decrease from 19 flights to 10 a week. 

It will additionally retire its last remaining two 747-200 freighter aircrafts by the end of November 2008, and will cancel the conversion of one of its 747-400 passenger aircraft into a freighter as originally planned.