ANA and El Al to join hands on Japan-Israel flights

All Nippon Airways and El Al Israel Airlines will join forces on flights between Japan and Israel in the first international tie-up by a major Japanese air carrier of the post-COVID era, Nikkei has learned. The two airlines have agreed on the terms of the deal, which includes code-sharing and cross-honoring rewards miles, and will soon make their partnership official, people familiar with the matter said. Code-sharing on flights between Japan and Tel Aviv is expected to begin as early as the spring of 2024 in Japan. The move shows how airlines are coming out of a defensive crouch to try to capture resurgent global demand for travel. El Al started direct service between Tel Aviv and the Tokyo area's Narita Airport in March 2023. Before COVID-19, visitors from Israel to Japan had increased for eight straight years through 2019. In 2019, there were about 44,000 -- double the number in 2015. El Al is not a member of any global airline alliance, such as the Star Alliance to which ANA belongs. The ANA Holdings unit, whose main domestic rival is Japan Airlines, seeks to encourage Israeli visitors to Japan to use its domestic network through its partnership with El Al. Japan-Israel exchanges are deepening. A bilateral investment pact entered into force in 2017, and the two countries decided in 2022 to launch a joint study group on the possibility of an economic partnership agreement. Israel is home to high-tech companies in semiconductors, autonomous driving and other sectors. Hundreds of global companies have established R&D hubs in Israel.<br/>