Iberia to Launch Its Flights to Tokyo Tomorrow

 

• The flight will take off from Madrid at 11:55am, with 352 passengers on board, a full house.
• With the establishment of this line, the City Council of the Spanish capital and Madrid Turismo by IFEMA Madrid, open the door to a new market that, in the first year, will generate an economic impact in both countries estimated at €100 million and nearly 1,900 direct and indirect jobs.
• The initiative also has the support of the central government through Turespaña.
• The airline offers three weekly flights between Madrid and Tokyo with Airbus A350 aircraft, the most modern and efficient model in its fleet.
• The new route to Tokyo is the longest in the entire Iberia network, with a 14-hour outbound flight and 16-hour return flight, always flying eastwards, meaning the plane will make a complete trip around the world.
• Japanese PCCs on every flight, Japanese movies, series and games on the entertainment system, a menu in Japanese, tea and rice, and chopsticks will be some of the in-flight features.

 

Tomorrow, 27 October, Iberia will launch flights between Madrid and Tokyo, establishing the only direct connection between Spain and Japan.

The flight will take off from Terminal 4 of Madrid Airport at 11:55am, with 352 passengers, a full house. After a 14-hour flight, it will land at Narita Airport at 10:45am (local time) on 28 October.

This new route is designed to expand Iberia's presence in Asia, following the good results of the daily flight to Doha, Qatar, launched in December 2023. This operation is part of the promotional actions promoted by Madrid Turismo by IFEMA Madrid, driven by the Community of Madrid, the Madrid City Council and IFEMA MADRID, and in which the companies and associations that make up the Tourism Experts Roundtable of the capital, including Iberia, work together. The initiative also has the support of the central government through Turespaña.

The opening of this new market is expected to generate, in the first year of operation, €100 million for the GDP of both countries, and create around 1,900 direct and indirect jobs.

“The opening of a new route always fills us with excitement, but this one is extra special, as we had to suspend our flights to Tokyo due to the pandemic. From today we are offering the only option that connects Spain with Japan directly, without stopovers, and we do so three times a week, which means around 90,000 seats between both countries in the first year of operation. Our ambition is to increase flight frequencies in 2025 to offer many more possibilities to travellers,” said Marco Sansavini, President of Iberia.

“The launch of this route is a key step in our positioning as a destination in Asia, a key part of our strategy aimed at attracting high-value tourists,” added Luis Martín Izquierdo, Deputy Minister of Culture, Tourism and Sport of the Community of Madrid.

For his part, Héctor Coronel, Director of Tourism for the Madrid City Council, added that “Madrid offers unique experiences that Japanese tourists will love. With the presence of major international luxury chains and the essence and hospitality of Spanish brands, our city is presented as a welcoming destination that combines tradition and avant-garde. We invite Japanese travellers to immerse themselves in our centuries-old gastronomy, enjoy top-level musical and flamenco shows, explore our world-famous museums and experience major sporting events and concerts by world stars. With this new route, Japanese people will have the opportunity to discover Madrid, a vibrant destination that can be enjoyed at any time of the year and that requires at least one week to be fully experienced and appreciated.”

In the words of Daniel Martínez, Executive Vice President of IFEMA MADRID, "this new direct connection between Madrid and Tokyo will be the perfect lever to boost the arrival of Japanese tourists to Madrid, as well as to materialise the results of the promotional campaigns that we have been running for months in key destinations in Asia-Pacific, in countries such as Japan, Singapore, China, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand."

Miguel Sanz, general manager of Turespaña, added that “Japan has been and continues to be a strategic market for our country. Proof of this is that next year marks the 50th anniversary of the Spanish Tourist Office in Tokyo. The profile of the Japanese visitor stands out for their high level of spending, as well as their interest in Spanish art and culture. Turespaña carries out very relevant promotional activities in Japan that include actions to support the marketing of Spanish tourist destinations, products, and services, as well as campaigns in the media and on social networks. This new direct connection between Spain and Japan by Iberia is excellent news for both countries.”

 

One Daily Flight

Iberia offers three flights a week between Madrid and Tokyo with Airbus A350 aircraft, the most modern and efficient model in its fleet, with capacity for 348 customers in Business, Premium Economy, and Economy:

Flight number	Origin-destination	Days of operation	Departure time	Arrival time
IB281	Madrid-Tokyo	Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday	11:55	10:15 the next day
IB282	Tokyo-Madrid	Monday, Friday, and Sunday	11:55	19.45

 

A Route that Goes Around the World

The new route to Tokyo is the longest in Iberia's entire network, taking 14 hours to go and 16 hours to return. Both routes are headed east, due to the closure of Russian airspace and the direction of the winds, so that Iberia customers will travel around the world on each trip to and from Tokyo and will fly over, among other things, the Aleutian Islands, Alaska, and Greenland, and will pass very close to the North Pole.

Given the distance and complexity of the route, the crew operating these flights is doubled. In total, it is made up of 4 pilots - 2 captains and 2 co-pilots - and 10 cabin crew, which will always include at least three Japanese PCCs to adequately serve the Japanese passengers.

 

A Special Flight, with Japanese Details

In addition to Japanese PCCs, a whole series of extra features around Japanese culture have been planned.

The entertainment system includes Japanese movies, TV shows and games, and Japanese newspapers and magazines are also available via the Press Reader app. And of course, there are Japanese subtitles on the onboard safety video and other useful information.

Additionally, Business Class passengers are provided with pyjamas and slippers for their comfort on board; the menu is also in Japanese, and among the items on the menu are rice on request, soy sauce, Japanese green tea and a wide variety of Japanese snacks and snacks.

In Premium Economy, the menu is also available in Japanese to all customers, and in Economy class, images of the different options on the menu are displayed. Chopsticks are available in all cabins upon request.

 

Call Centre with Japanese Support

To assist Japanese passengers, a call centre with Japanese staff (+81 03-3298-5238) will be open Monday to Friday, from 9am. to 5pm.

Likewise, iberia.com and the Iberia app are available in Japanese, with all content in this language and where tickets can be purchased in yen.