Hokkaido Air System Co., Ltd. (株式会社北海道エアシステム, Kabushiki-gaisha Hokkaidō Ea Shisutemu), or HAC, is a regional airline that operates scheduled services in Hokkaidō and Aomori Prefecture, Japan[2] from a main base of operations at Okadama Airport in Higashi-ku, Sapporo.[3] It is a private company controlled by Japan Airlines, with 86 employees as of July 2018.[4]
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Founded | 30 September 1997; 25 years ago (1997-09-30) | ||||||
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Hubs | Okadama Airport | ||||||
Frequent-flyer program | JAL Mileage Bank | ||||||
Alliance | Oneworld (affiliate) | ||||||
Fleet size | 3 | ||||||
Destinations | 6 | ||||||
Parent company | Japan Airlines | ||||||
Headquarters | Okadama Airport Sapporo, Hokkaido | ||||||
Key people | Yoichiro Kuwano, President | ||||||
Employees | 98 (March 31, 2017)[1] | ||||||
Website | hac-air.co.jp |
The airline was established in 1997, and started operations in 1998. Founded as a joint venture with the Hokkaido government and regional municipalities and businesses, it was an affiliate of Japan Air System until that airline consolidated into Japan Airlines.[5] Its headquarters were at one time located in the Terminal Building of New Chitose Airport in Chitose, Hokkaidō, Japan.[6]
HAC's initial routes in 1998 were Chitose-Hakodate, Hakodate-Asahikawa, Hakodate-Kushiro and Asahikawa-Kushiro, followed by Chitose-Kushiro and Hakodate-Memanbetsu in 1999 and Hakodate-Sendai in 2001. It began Okadama service in 2003 with service to Hakodate and Kushiro, for a total of nine routes. HAC also served Monbetsu from Chitose and Okadama in 2005–06.[7] Air Hokkaido ceased operations on 31 March 2006 and its sole route, Hakodate-Okushiri, was taken over the next day by Hokkaido Air System.[8]
HAC left the Japan Airlines group at the end of fiscal year 2010 (March 2011) as part of the corporate restructuring of JAL. JAL retained a 14% stake in the airline, making it the second-largest shareholder after the Hokkaido prefectural government.[9] Japan Airlines ceased ticket handling and reservation services for HAC flights effective September 1, 2011.[10] The Hokkaido prefectural government and various local governments continued to subsidize HAC services to various smaller cities in the prefecture.[11]
HAC recorded losses of 296 million yen and had negative equity of 116 million yen in the fiscal year ending March 2013, and took several measures to improve its performance, including resuming codesharing with JAL and starting service from Sapporo to Misawa in July 2013.[11] It was revealed in August 2013 that Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers in the Hokkaido government had been pushing JAL to once again take over HAC.[9] As of December, JAL and the Hokkaido government were reportedly in negotiations to make HAC a subsidiary of JAL, as part of which JAL and Hokkaido government would each pay off half of HAC's excess debt, with the Hokkaido government possibly doing so by cancelling part of its 360 million yen loan claim against the airline.[12] The transaction was announced in October 2014.[13] In October 2016, HAC consolidated its flight numbers and reservations system with the JAL group.[14]
Hokkaido Air System operates services to the following destinations:[2]
City | Airport | Notes | Refs |
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Sapporo | Okadama Airport | Hub | |
Rishirifuji | Rishiri Airport | ||
Memanbetsu | Memanbetsu Airport | ||
Kushiro | Kushiro Airport | ||
Hakodate | Hakodate Airport | ||
Okushiri | Okushiri Airport | ||
Misawa | Misawa Airport | ||
The Hokkaido Air System fleet consists of the following aircraft (as of October 2022):[15][16]
Aircraft | In fleet | Orders | Passengers | Notes |
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ATR 42-600 | 3 | — | 48 | |
Aircraft | Total | Introduced | Retired | Replacement |
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Saab 340B | 3[16] | 1998 | 2021 | ATR 42-600 |
日航は2010年度末までHACの51%の株式を持つ親会社だった。10年1月の会社更生法適用申請を前に、09年9月にHACからの経営撤退を表明。11年中に大半を手放したが、現在も道庁(約36%)に次ぐ約14%の株を持つ。
HACは13年3月期に2億9600万円の最終赤字を計上し、1億1600万円の債務超過に陥った。再建策の一環として、7月から日航と共同運航(コードシェア)を始めたほか、丘珠―三沢(青森)線を就航している。
日本航空による北海道エアシステム(HAC)の再子会社化で、道庁と日航がHACの債務超過額をそれぞれ負担し、今年度内にも解消する方向で調整していることが2日、分かった。道庁は債務超過の解消に向け、約3億6千万円あるHACへの貸付金のうち数千万円を債権放棄することなどを検討している。
Media related to Hokkaido Air System at Wikimedia Commons
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