Minnesota businesses, residents and MSP received welcome news this week when the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) tentatively accepted Delta Air Lines' bid to use one of five day-time slots available to U.S. air carriers at Tokyo's Haneda Airport to provide service from MSP.
Delta already operates a nonstop daily flight between MSP and Toyko's Narita Airport. However, Narita is located further out from the city center. Haneda is only a 30-minute drive, making it a more desirable location for business travelers.
There have been concerns that the Narita flight might be in jeopardy if the USDOT's decision granted another route/airline the last available slot. So a favorable ruling on Delta's bid for a MSP-Haneda slot was considered critical for continued direct access to Asia.
According to the USDOT, Delta's MSP proposal won the day partly because it "…provides an ideal opportunity to again address the Department's goal of providing Haneda access from a Northern/Midwestern hub city with a substantial catchment area in the Midwestern and Eastern United States." (A catchment area is the area from which a city, service or institution attracts a population that uses its services.)
Earlier this year, the MAC, local businesses and congressional representatives all rallied in support of Delta's request to service Haneda via MSP.
"The Transportation Department's tentative decision, if maintained, is great news for the people and businesses of Minnesota, helping ensure we continue to have direct access to Asia," said Brian Ryks, executive director and CEO of the Metropolitan Airports Commission. "I am very grateful to Minnesota's Congressional delegation, Governor Dayton and the area business community for all their efforts to send a clear message to Washington, D.C.: this service is extremely important to Minnesota's economy."
For more about this historic opportunity, visit the DOT website.
