Chubu Centrair International Airport

For the domestic airport serving Nagoya, see Nagoya Airfield.

Chubu Centrair International Airport (中部国際空港, Chūbu Kokusai Kūkō) (IATA: NGO, ICAO: RJGG) is an international airport on an artificial island (which also houses the Aichi International Exhibition Center [ja]) in Ise Bay, Tokoname City in Aichi Prefecture, 35 km (22 mi) south of Nagoya in central Japan.^[2] The airport covers about 470 hectares (1,161 acres) of land and has one 3,500m runway.^[3]

Chubu Centrair International Airport 中部国際空港 Chūbu Kokusai Kūkō
Aerial photo from 2009, before Terminal 2 and the Flight of Dreams were built
IATA: NGO ICAO: RJGG
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner/Operator	Central Japan International Airport Co., Ltd. (CJIAC)
Serves	Chūkyō metropolitan area
Location	Tokoname, Aichi, Japan
Opened	17 February 2005; 19 years ago (2005-02-17)
Focus city for	All Nippon Airways Japan Airlines Polar Air Cargo
Operating base for	Jetstar Japan
Elevation AMSL	12 ft / 4 m
Coordinates	34°51′30″N 136°48′19″E / 34.85833°N 136.80528°E / 34.85833; 136.80528
Website	www.centrair.jp
Maps
NGO/RJGG Location in Aichi Prefecture Show map of Aichi Prefecture NGO/RJGG Location in Japan Show map of Japan
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 18/36 3,500 11,483 Concrete/Asphalt
Statistics (2018)
Passengers 12,043,636 Cargo (metric tonnes) 199,140 Aircraft movement 96,591
Source: Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism^[1]

Centrair is classified as a first class airport and is the main international gateway for the Chubu ("central") region of Japan. The name "Centrair" (セントレア, Sentorea) is an abbreviation of Central Japan International Airport, an alternate translation used in the English name of the airport's operating company, Central Japan International Airport Co., Ltd. (中部国際空港株式会社, Chūbu Kokusai Kūkō Kabushiki-gaisha). 10.2 million people used the airport in 2015, ranking 8th busiest in the nation, and 208,000 tons of cargo was moved in 2015.

History

 

JAL and ANA operations at Chubu International Airport

Chubu Centrair serves the third largest metropolitan area in Japan, centered around the city of Nagoya. The region is a major manufacturing centre, with the headquarters and production facilities of Toyota Motor Corporation and production facilities for Mitsubishi Motors and Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation.^[4] The cargo handling capacity of the existing Nagoya Airport was not enough to satisfy the demands from the regional economy, and the airport was hampered by its location in a residential area of Aichi Prefecture, limiting the number of flights that can use the airport, as well as the hours in which they could operate.

With much lobbying by local business groups such as Toyota, especially for 24-hour cargo flights, construction started August 2000, with a budget of JPY¥768 billion (€5.5 billion, US$7.3 billion), but through efficient management nearly ¥100 billion was saved.^[5] Penta-Ocean Construction was a major contractor.^{[6][unreliable source?]}

According to Japanese media sources, Kodo-kai, a yakuza faction in the Yamaguchi-gumi group, earned an immense amount of money by being the sole supplier, via a front company called Samix, of dirt, rock, sand, and gravel for the airport construction project. Although several Samix executives were criminally indicted for racketeering, the prosecutions were later dropped. According to the sources, Kodo-kai had informants working within the Nagoya police who fed the organization inside information which allowed them to stay a step ahead of investigating authorities.^[7]

When Chubu Centrair opened on 17 February 2005, it took over almost all of the existing Nagoya Airport's commercial flights, and relieved Tokyo and Kansai areas of cargo shipments. As a replacement for Nagoya Airport, it also inherited its IATA airport code NGO. The airport opened in time to service the influx of visitors for Expo 2005, located near Nagoya.

2nd runway

Aichi Governor Hideaki Omura announced in December 2021 that two new runways were planned at the airport: a 3,290 m (10,790 ft) parallel runway to the east of the existing runway, to be completed in 2027, and a 3,500 m (11,500 ft) runway on the west side of the airport, which would replace the existing runway.^[8]

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism of Japan has begun preparations for construction of Chubu Centrair Airport's second runway in 2024. The new 3290m runway will be built 210m east of the current runway. Construction will begin in 2025, and operation will begin in 2027.

Route withdrawals

There were several withdrawals from Chubu Centrair after the airport commenced its operation. American Airlines operated a route to Chicago for less than seven months in 2005, but said the service was "not as profitable as we had hoped".^[9] In 2008, after a few years of service from Chubu Centrair, several airlines cancelled certain flights and put others on hiatus, including Malaysia Airlines' suspension of flight to Kuala Lumpur,^[10] Jetstar ending its airport operation, Continental Airlines stopping its Honolulu flight and United Airlines' suspension of flights to San Francisco, citing low premium cabin demand. This flight also continued to Chicago until 2007.^[11] Emirates and HK Express left the airport in 2009, although HK Express resumed service from September 2014. Japan Airlines also ended its flights to Paris in 2009, Bangkok in 2020 and Dallas/Fort Worth in 2022. Garuda Indonesia ended service from Denpasar in March 2012, returned to Nagoya with the opening of direct flights from Jakarta in March 2019, then suspended services once again in March 2020. EVA Air left the airport in June 2012. TransAsia Airways subsidiary V Air withdrew from Centrair and ended operations in October 2016.

Northwest Airlines operated routes from Nagoya to Detroit, Guam, Manila, Saipan, and Tokyo–Narita prior to its 2009 merger with Delta Air Lines.^[12] Delta took over this operation and added a Honolulu route in 2010, growing to nine daily flights at Nagoya, but cancelled most of these services over the next decade. Delta's last two routes at Nagoya, Detroit and Honolulu, were suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The Detroit route resumed on a weekly basis in April 2021, but Delta announced its permanent cancellation in 2023.^[13]

Aichi Sky Expo

An exposition centre on the airport's island was opened on August 30, 2019. The exposition centre has 6 exhibition halls each being 10,000 m² (110,000 sq ft).^[14] Events held at the venue include the 2019 edition of the Wired Music Festival on September 7 and 8.^[15]

Terminals and other major buildings

 

Main hall of arrival, at the conjuncture of the T-shaped building

Terminal 1

 

Entrance to Centrair's 4th Floor Sky Town

 

Shops in traditional Japanese style

Terminal 1 is the main terminal of the airport. The northern side of the terminal holds domestic flights, while the southern side holds international flights, each with dedicated ticket counters, security checkpoints and baggage carousels, and for international flights, immigration and customs facilities. Arrivals are processed on the second floor, and departures on the third. The lower level is used for maintenance, catering, and other ground operations, as well as for passenger buses to hardstands in the middle of the airport ramp. There are thirteen gates for domestic flights (including three bus gates), and fourteen for international flights (including three bus gates).

Sky Town Shopping Center is on the fourth floor, accessible to the general public, with 61 shops and restaurants, organized into two "streets", Renga-dori^[16] and Chochin-yokocho.^[17] The Chochin-yokocho shops are individually themed to have an authentic Japanese look.^[17]

Terminal 2

Terminal 2 is a domestic and international terminal for budget airlines, with 11 gates for international flights and 9 gates for domestic flights.^[18] There is a shuttle bus connecting Terminals 1 and 2.^[19]

It opened on September 20, 2019.

Flight of Dreams

 

A Boeing 787 Dreamliner at the Flight of Dreams section of the airport

A Seattle-themed retail complex called "Flight of Dreams" opened in 2018, with the first-ever prototype Boeing 787 Dreamliner as a display centerpiece.^[20] Boeing started in Seattle and many of its planes are still built in the area. Some components of the Boeing 787 are manufactured in Japan and are flown out of the airport to Seattle for final assembly.

Access Plaza

An access plaza contains the Central Japan International Airport Station as well as other services. It is located in front of and connected to Terminal 1 and provides access through the P1 parking lot passage to the Flight of Dreams and Terminal 2.

Boeing facilities

The Boeing Dreamlifter Operations Center is located on the airport's apron, to the south of the main terminal. This facility is used to store Japanese components of the Boeing 787 aircraft, including wings, while awaiting airlift to the assembly facility in the US.^[21] Dreamlifter aircraft have operated from Centrair since 2007 and make several trips a week to Boeing's 787 assembly plant at Charleston International Airport.^[22]

Statistics

Annual passenger traffic at NKM NGO airports. See Wikidata query.

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Airlines	Destinations
Air Busan	Busan,^[23] Seoul–Incheon^[24]
Air China	Beijing–Capital,^[25] Shanghai–Pudong
Air Do	Hakodate, Sapporo–Chitose
All Nippon Airways	Fukuoka, Ishigaki, Memanbetsu, Miyako, Tokyo–Haneda, Tokyo–Narita Seasonal: Asahikawa
ANA Wings	Akita, Fukuoka, Kumamoto, Miyazaki, Nagasaki, Naha, Sapporo–Chitose, Sendai, Tokyo–Haneda, Tokyo–Narita Seasonal: Hakodate
Asiana Airlines	Seoul–Incheon
Batik Air Malaysia	Kaohsiung,^[26] Kuala Lumpur–International, Taipei–Taoyuan^[27]
Cathay Pacific	Hong Kong,^[28] Taipei–Taoyuan^[29]
Cebu Pacific	Manila
China Airlines	Taipei–Taoyuan
China Eastern Airlines	Shanghai–Pudong^[30]
China Southern Airlines	Dalian^[25]
Finnair	Helsinki (resumes 30 May 2024)^[31]
Fuji Dream Airlines	Izumo,^[32] Kōchi-Ryoma^[33]
HK Express	Hong Kong
Hong Kong Airlines	Hong Kong^[34]
Ibex Airlines	Fukuoka, Kagoshima,^[35] Kumamoto, Matsuyama, Niigata, Ōita, Sendai
Japan Airlines	Honolulu, Sapporo–Chitose, Shanghai–Pudong, Taipei–Taoyuan, Tianjin, Tokyo–Haneda, Tokyo–Narita Seasonal: Obihiro
Japan Transocean Air	Naha Seasonal: Ishigaki, Miyako
Jeju Air	Seoul–Incheon
Jetstar Japan	Fukuoka, Kagoshima, Manila,^[36] Naha, Sapporo–Chitose
Jin Air	Seoul–Incheon^[37]
Juneyao Air	Beijing–Daxing,^[38] Nanjing, Shanghai–Pudong^[39]
Korean Air	Busan, Seoul–Incheon Charter: Muan^[40]
Oriental Air Bridge	Akita, Fukuoka,^[41] Miyazaki^[42]
Peach	Naha,^[43] Sapporo–Chitose, Sendai, Taipei–Taoyuan^[44]
Philippine Airlines	Cebu, Manila
Shanghai Airlines	Shanghai–Pudong
Shenzhen Airlines	Shenzhen^[45]
Singapore Airlines	Singapore
Skymark Airlines	Kagoshima, Naha, Sapporo–Chitose
Solaseed Air	Kagoshima, Miyazaki, Naha
Spring Airlines	Dalian,^[46] Shanghai–Pudong^[30]
StarFlyer	Fukuoka, Taipei–Taoyuan
Starlux Airlines	Taipei–Taoyuan^[47]
Thai AirAsia X	Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi (begins 15 July 2024)
Thai Airways International	Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi
Tianjin Airlines	Tianjin^[48]
Tigerair Taiwan	Kaohsiung,^[49] Taipei–Taoyuan
T'way Air	Jeju
United Airlines	Guam
VietJet Air	Hanoi^[50] Charter: Da Nang
Vietnam Airlines	Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City

Cargo

Airlines	Destinations
DHL Aviation^[citation needed]	Anchorage, Cincinnati, Charleston (SC), Everett, Hong Kong, Leipzig/Halle, Seoul–Incheon, Taipei–Taoyuan, Taranto-Grottaglie, Wichita–McConnell
JAL Cargo	Seoul–Incheon,^[51] Shanghai–Pudong, Tokyo–Narita^[51]
National Airlines^[citation needed]	Anchorage, Los Angeles
ULS Airlines Cargo^[citation needed]	Hong Kong, Istanbul

Ground transportation

Train

 

Meitetsu's μSky Limited Express (right) and Limited Express (left)

Central Japan International Airport Station, the train station for Centrair is located on the Meitetsu Airport Line operated by Nagoya Railroad (Meitetsu). The fastest "μSky Limited Express" service connects the airport to Meitetsu Nagoya Station in 28 minutes. All μSky Limited Express are operating at a max speed of 120 km/h by 2000 series trains, which have all seats designated and it is required to purchase an extra 360 yen "special limited express ticket".^[52] Meitetsu Nagoya Station is adjacent to JR Nagoya Station, allowing transfers to Shinkansen bullet trains bound for not only Tokyo and Osaka but also many major cities, as well as JR, Meitetsu, and Kintetsu local trains, and the Nagoya Municipal Subway.

There is a proposal for a JR line linking Centrair to Nagoya Station and the JR network through Taketoyo Line's Okkawa Station. However, no actual construction works have been implemented at the moment.

There's also a proposal for Aonami line linking Centrair to Nagoya Station by constructing a tunnel or bridge. Nagoya municipal government has acted the assessment of feasibility in 2019.^[53]

Bus

Centrair Limousine provides direct bus service to and from central Nagoya, Sakae, and major hotels.^[54] It is operated by a private bus company in Mie Prefecture. High-speed buses to the neighboring prefectures for 3,000 yen to Kyoto via Mie Prefecture have been operating.^[55][56]

Ferry

A ferry connects to the passenger terminal in Tsu – a 40-minute trip.

Car

A toll road, the Chitaōdan Road, links Centrair and the mainland.^[57]

Bicycle

Bicycles are not allowed on the Centrair Bridge toll road to the mainland. Cyclists departing the airport must either take a Meitetsu local train one stop to Rinkū Tokoname Station or a taxi across the bridge to the Rinkū Interchange north of Aeon Mall Tokoname.

References

1. (PDF). Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 October 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
3. "Chubu International Airport Specs and Stats". mlit.go.jp. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
4. "Feb 10, 2005 GOODBYE & AND THANK YOU KOMAKI AIRPORT". Retrieved 7 June 2015.
5. "Central Japan International Airport". 23 April 2010. Retrieved 23 March 2014.
6. "Centrair Profile and History". airport-technology.com. Retrieved 23 March 2014.
7. Sentaku Magazine (reprinted in the Japan Times), "Kodo-kai still raking in funds despite tougher yakuza laws", 23 October 2015
8. "Chubu Airport to Build Two New Runways to Increase Capacity by 60%". www.aviationpros.com. 14 December 2021. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
9. Skertic, Mark (1 October 2005). "American Airlines to end flights to Nagoya, Japan". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
10. "LCC eyes Nagoya-Kuala Lumpur runs". Kyodo. 13 September 2013. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
11. Brown, Steven (22 July 2008). "United Airlines to stop flying to Nagoya from S.F." San Francisco Business Times. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
12. "Northwest's Nagoya flights now flying from 'Centrair'". Saipan Tribune. 22 March 2005. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
13. "Delta is pulling out of Nagoya, leaving Japanese city with no flights from North America". MSN. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
14. 株式会社インプレス (25 July 2019). セントレア直結の国際展示場「Aichi Sky Expo」公開。ビッグサイト、メッセ、インテックスに次ぐ規模. トラベル Watch (in Japanese). Retrieved 1 November 2019.
15. 開催5周年にして初の2DAYS開催でパワーアップ「WIRED MUSIC FESTIVAL'19」. PR Times (in Japanese). 1 February 2019. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
16. Renga-dori 1 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine
17. Chochin-yokocho 1 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine
18. "エアポートガイド" (PDF). Chubu Centrair International Airport. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
19. "Free Shuttle Bus for Terminal 2 - Terminal2". Chubu Centrair International Airport, Nagoya. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
20. "A taste of Seattle and Boeing in Japan as first Dreamliner goes on display". The Seattle Times. 10 October 2018. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
21. "404 Not Found - 404 Not Found" 中部国際空港セントレアのご案内 (PDF). Chubu Centrair International Airport. 1 June 2017. Retrieved 17 October 2017. {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)
22. "A peek inside Boeing's gargantuan Dreamlifter cargo plane at Japan's Centrair airport". Mainichi Daily News. 13 February 2020. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
23. "Air Busan adds Busan – Nagoya service from June 2018".
24. "Air Busan adds new routes in April 2020".
25. "Mainland Chinese Carriers NS23 International / Regional Network – 23APR23". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
26. "Batik Air Malaysia Plans Kaohsiung / Nagoya Feb 2024 Launch". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 22 November 2023.
27. "BATIK AIR MALAYSIA ADDS NAGOYA; NS23 JAPAN SERVICE CHANGES". AeroRoutes. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
28. "Cathay Pacific to resume Hong Kong-Nagoya service from Jan-2023". CAPA. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
29. "Cathay Pacific to Resume Taipei – Nagoya Service in NW23". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
30. "Mainland Chinese Carriers NS23 International / Regional Network – 14MAY23". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
31. "FINNAIR RESUMES NAGOYA SERVICE FROM LATE-MAY 2024". AeroRoutes. 8 November 2023. Retrieved 8 November 2023.
32. https://www.fujidream.co.jp/company/press/doc/240112.pdf. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
33. "Fuji Dream Airlines adds Nagoya Chubu Service in late-1Q23". AeroRoutes. 18 January 2023. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
34. "Hong Kong Airlines Adds Nagoya / Yonago Service From July 2023". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
35. Liu, Jim. "IBEX Airlines W20 operation changes". Routesonline. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
36. "JETSTAR JAPAN RESUMES NAGOYA – MANILA SERVICE IN LATE-MARCH 2023". AeroRoutes. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
37. "진에어, 9월에 인천~나고야 노선 신규 취항" [Jin Air, launches Incheon~Nagoya on September]. Yonhap News Agency. 7 July 2023.
38. "Juneyao Airlines Adds Beijing – Japan Service From July 2023". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
39. "Juneyao Airlines Resumes Shanghai – Nagoya Service From August 2023". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
40. "Korean Air May/June 2023 Muan-Nagoya charter operations". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
41. "Oriental Air Bridge NW23 Service Increases". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
42. "Oriental Air Bridge Adds Nagoya and ATR42-600 Service in NS23". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
43. Liu, Jim. "Peach expands Nagoya Chubu service in late-Dec 2020". Routesonline. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
44. "Peach NS23 Taiwan Network Expansions". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
45. "Shenzhen Airlines Adds Nagoya Service From late-March 2024". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
46. "Spring Airlines Oct/Nov 2023 International Service Additions". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
47. "STARLUX AIRLINES NW23 SERVICE CHANGES: SAN FRANCISCO DEC 2023 LAUNCH". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 5 September 2023.
48. "Mainland Chinese Carriers N23 Japan Operation – 02APR23". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
49. "tigerair Taiwan NW22 Operation Changes – 13OCT22". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 27 October 2022.
50. "VietJet Air July 2022 Japan Network Expansion". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 9 May 2022.
51. "JAL resumes freighter operations from late-Feb 2024". AeroRoutes. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
52. 名鉄空港特急「ミュースカイ」 – 電車のご利用案内 | 名古屋鉄道. www.meitetsu.co.jp. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
53. 関謙次 (25 September 2018). . 朝日新聞 (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2 October 2019. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
54. "Centrair Limousine – Chubu Centrair International Airport, Nagoya". Retrieved 7 June 2015.
55. . Archived from the original on 10 February 2018. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
56. "Nonstop Express Limousine Bus Service". Retrieved 1 April 2018.
57. "Aichi Road Concession Co.,Ltd". 「ROAD」 to future, connected REGION and FUTURE. Retrieved 28 February 2024.

External links

  Media related to Chubu International Airport at Wikimedia Commons
  Chubu Centrair International Airport travel guide from Wikivoyage

• (in English) Official website
• Japan Mint:
• Current weather for RJGG at NOAA/NWS
• Accident history for NGO at Aviation Safety Network
•   Geographic data related to Chubu Centrair International Airport at OpenStreetMap