Gov't asks airlines to halt new bookings as Olympic traffic rises

How about halting the Games and the incoming flights and saving yourseves some trouble?

I feel so much safer. Thanks Japan.

Another Olympics first and exception at expense of the public interest.

GaijinjlandToday  06:49 am JST

I feel so much safer. Thanks Japan.

Indeed! Safe AND secure.

Irony tends to be lost on this board.

But Thomas Bach said there's zero chance of the Olympics spreading coronavirus, right? So why do we need this?

If there is an increase in reservations during the busy period despite the request to halt new bookings, the ministry may ask airlines for the reason and demand that they be canceled if it deems the airlines were not following the request.

So, there's somebody at the Transport Ministry checking every inbound reservation into Japan?

The latest initiative comes as the government has said it will restrict the average number of new daily arrivals in the country to 2,000 as a step to tighten coronavirus border controls.

Hello. Hello? Who's in charge here, Hello Kitty and Chibi Maruko-chan?

I'm getting disgust fatigue reading this nonsense every day....

I feel like they had a year to get ready and tossed it up.

Excellent! Another clear, well thought-out , easy to follow and execute policy.

Er...it is a bit late for this. People will have booked their flights ages ago. Are they proposing a mass cancelling of bookings suddenly?

So they’re essentially going to block foreign residents and Japanese people from returning home for the next month and a half unless they’ve already booked their flight in order to prioritize the Olympics??? If so, that’s absolutely ridiculous.

My fear is that they’ll next start canceling existing bookings for non-Olympic people too. Today my husband and I are flying to the US to attend my dad’s memorial service, and we’ll be arriving back in Tokyo in the beginning of August. They’d better not cancel our bookings! We got our tickets months ago.

I'm becoming rather numb to any news about the Olympics. Once it is over will the government regain a semblance of sanity?

Airlines asked to halt new bookings.

Oh I get it- I am not in Japan and it will not be Tokyo 2020 Olympics. It is the ‘mad hatters tea party’ and I am somewhere else entirely.

Alfie NoakesToday  07:23 am JST

But Thomas Bach said there's zero chance of the Olympics spreading coronavirus, right? So why do we need this?

If there is an increase in reservations during the busy period despite the request to halt new bookings, the ministry may ask airlines for the reason and demand that they be canceled if it deems the airlines were not following the request.

So, there's somebody at the Transport Ministry checking every inbound reservation into Japan?

Let me see your medical license, Dr. thomas Bach. Where did you get it, the now defunct Trump University or by writing to a Post Office Box in Pueblo, Colorado? That's how some religious 'ministers' get their certification.

EyeblackToday  08:03 am JST

I'm becoming rather numb to any news about the Olympics. Once it is over will the government regain a semblance of sanity?

Sanity? This is insane and obscene. Once the Olympics are over the Japanese gov't will no credibility whatsoever. None.

What is the next sacrifice that the locals have to do for this garbage Olympics…it just keeps getting worse!

“Japan demands regular people not enter so special people can run around a track, lift heavy things, and punch, kick, and throw each other around”.

Some dudeToday  08:52 am JST

“Japan demands regular people not enter so special people can run around a track, lift heavy things, and punch, kick, and throw each other around”.

Hey prizefighters, keep your distances! Throw air punches instead!

Hey government.

How about you guys just stop.

Don’t say anything, don’t do anything, don’t think about anything.

Just stop.

Have your little Olympics, and then when it’s finished, Get the vaccines rolling again.

Then and only then, after the vaccines have been given, then maybe, just maybe you guys can do whatever nonsense you were doing before 2020.

Does that sound fair?

Wow

To any of you reading this associated with the Olympics in any way how do you feel about this? We all, including Japanese companies, have to sacrifice for your selfishness

The Japanese government has asked airlines to halt new bookings by the general public for flights arriving in Japan during the period when arrivals of athletes and delegation officials for the Tokyo Olympics increase

Or else what?? If I were an airline, I'd give the japanese government the middle finger. Asking airlines to bend over backwards so the government can have its way with their RETARDEDLY stupid olympics nobody wanted? Nah.

"As a step to tighten coronavirus border controls"

Give me a break, first they don't allow anybody in and now they are letting all the Olympic entourage in. No consistency whatsoever. Oh weren't there rising cases again and isn't there a state of emergency, or was it a quasi state of emergency whatever that is? The World is looking at Japan again with total incomprehension and bemusement.

I thought Japan was still closed to foreigners?

Showed this to my wife and she found the article in the Asashi Shimbum in Japanese. She did not believe me when I told her this. She has shared it on Line with her family and friends.

Unfortunately now Japanese people are starting to resent the athletes.

The most common word used was wagamama (some other words would result in my post being removed)

How ironic. Now Japanese citizens are NOT allowed to return to Japan in favor of foreigners entering for the Olympics. (Which Bach and Suga promised would not inconvenience the Japanese people BTW). Japanese wishing to return to Japan from Indonesia can NOT because there are no hotel rooms for their mandatory required quarantine. Instead these room are being used by foreigners who are allowed to enter Japan with NO quarantine! And little outrage from the Japanese people, the wonderful peace victory Olympics propaganda flows on with Bach and Coates touring the country

Well, if they don't want to halt the games, that's their business. I hear there might be a typhoon coming soon during the Olympic period. Good luck with that. Mother Nature does not discriminate, nor does she take kick backs.

zichi. We all know that. You do not need to keep repeating.

My concerns are obviously for those that need to make sudden trips of compassion, as happened to my colleague recently.

This is grossly unfair should a situation like that occur. I don’t think any of us WANT to travel right now with all the bureaucracy involved.

just hold on - airlines are one of the most devastated industries during the pandemic, and now the Suga government is asking them to not accept new reservations as the testing facilities at airports may not be able to handle the influx of passengers arriving. Is it not the responsibility of the government to have safety precautions in place during the olympics? this would mean ramping up testing facilities and staff at airports to handle increased numbers of incoming passengers. The government needs to take more realistic responsibility for testing facilities. get with - get real.

...........SNAFU....... you cant make this crap up, calling this incompetence seems like a high compliment!

Long queues at the airport for athletes, officials and others due to not enough staff to process and test them.

As if they did not know thousands of extra people would be arriving at this time.

Joe Public again pays the price for these IOC Greed Games.

Everyday you read these ridiculous measures (if they can be called measures) and think they have exhausted their list only the next day to be proved wrong by even more silly half-assed measures. I probably need my own bubble to give my mind some peace from all these silliness.

For Japanese airlines, the ministry has asked them to restrict the number to 3,400 passengers a week.

Foreign airlines 40 non olympic related passengers per flight, assuming most operate one flight a day that equates to 280 passengers a week whereas Japanese airlines it is 3400 per week and why is it not per flight ? Make it obscure for the less thinking mind. I see it like indirectly giving Japanese airlines an advantage over the foreign airlines.This is not about measures to curb to the spread of the virus but a cover to prevent competition.

The issue here is purely the increasing numbers of people traveling this summer, and how many need to be screened before admission from the airport into the country. It's an admission that capacity to process all the incoming flights is not there.

Remember what happened recently at Finnish border control when a huge wave of Finns returning by car and bus (not airports) from EU championship games overwhelmed the border. Customs officials were ovrrwhelmed and started letting returning Finns through eithout PCR tests. Soon their infection rates went up twenty times.

Japanese authorities are signalling they're willing and able to cancel flights rather than just let people through.

40 passengers per day? Does the government think people from the US and EU arrive in Japan with Embraer airplanes?

Long queues at the airport for athletes, officials and others due to not enough staff to process and test them.

I missed the usual line that Japan was suffering from acute labor shortage hence the lack of staff. C'mon, a year and the half into the pandemics, even the poorest of nations with very little resource are testing without any problem yet Japan is still having problems increasing tests. Thousands of technicians and students at unversities, private labs do PCR testing everyday why can't they be used because they are not special interest like doctors hence the insistence that doctors take the swab, doctors give the vax in return paid handsomely and cement their allegiance to the LDP. Why for once can't they do what is needed to do to that benefits the people, the country as a whole and not some select few.

Unfortunately now Japanese people are starting to resent the athletes.

The most common word used was wagamama (some other words would result in my post being removed)

SAVE IT!!

That's just a TOTAL Waste of good energy, going Nowhere.

Why waste your energy when there's LDP/JOC and all THEIR fans. These guys right now, wine sake and steaks! State of Emergency whatever… you think they care? The facts are this. Olympics are HERE and

maybe people wanna moan about it sure, but in the end, boo hoo. It won't stop the LDP champagne and oysters.

So nothing matters now. Why? B/c the LOOTING is DONE. Bach's here, doing his VIctory lap Tour. Tax Payer's like your family, they paid for Bach to take his all over Japan tour. He's happy to take it.

More Bach money just coming out of his banks. So he's Smiling for all the camera.

From where I stand, it's real simple. What these LOOTERS want is simple and they have it.

Pretty clear for the Looters and friends, it's JOB WELL DONE!

So resenting Athletes, like I said, no point at all. The dudes in charge who order the PR and advertising. Or sponsors who put on these neverending NON STOP feel-good interviews and media stories.

It's just for show. Looters gotta look good. Athletes are just the entertainment.

Athletes don't loot. They don't go all in overbudget 20x to put on the gong show. They sure as hell aren't forcing sugar or whoever to change the "rules" about bubbles, borders and PCR. Flying in Bach and Coe. all expenses paid, nope- not the athletes call!

Tell your folks they gotta stop crying about athletes and do their job /duty and go VOTE and get ALL their friends to VOTE and one day, maybe make the Looters PAY.

Until that voting happens, well get comfy. Because this is the way it's gonna be. Over and over and over, again and again and again until they do. This is what success looks like for Looters and friends.

They win this round. Everyone else… not so much.

Come on, the government is reacting very fast and creatively to this sudden surge in unexpected visitors !

What? This was planned for 2020 and they had one additional year to prepare for it? No way, you must be kidding.

Asking for too many sacrifices from the people.

You need to reread the article! It's not about the "people of Japan"! It's about the airlines.

Since the government is making this request from private corporations, they should compensate them for lost income.

Japan is not a dictatorship, and if the government wants cooperation, they need to pay for it!

Unfortunately now Japanese people are starting to resent the athletes.

Where did THIS come from? Or is it just YOUR opinion?

Japan has less than 3,500 new cases reported each day, with a population of about 125 million and wants to impose more restrictions and many wish to cancel the Olympics. The USA , by comparison has about 33, 000 new cases each day, almost 10 times as many as Japan, yet has less than 3 times the population, and sporting events are being held at full capacity with few restrictions.

Very different are the reactions to very different degrees of the same situation.

Japan has less than 3,500 new cases reported each day, with a population of about 125 million and wants to impose more restrictions and many wish to cancel the Olympics. The USA , by comparison has about 33, 000 new cases each day, almost 10 times as many as Japan

You give us the impression that it is possible to find covid cases without testing ? Next time factor in the number of tests in your comparison.

Japan and the people wanted these Olympics so they now must take responsibility and make the sacrifices needed. Some might miss a summer holiday but traveling is now hard anyway. Japan still has the games so people should think they are lucky. The games will bring unity as said by Mr. Bach. Please think positively

Japan has less than 3,500 new cases reported each day, with a population of about 125 million and wants to impose more restrictions and many wish to cancel the Olympics. The USA , by comparison has about 33, 000 new cases each day, almost 10 times as many as Japan, yet has less than 3 times the population, and sporting events are being held at full capacity with few restrictions.

(Cough cough) This is Japan, not the US!

Oh and there are more people in the US who are fully vaccinated, so next time you want to try to compare anything, at least do everyone a favor and stop cherry-picking facts!

@Yubaru

Unfortunately now Japanese people are starting to resent the athletes.

Where did THIS come from? Or is it just YOUR opinion?

Obviously I did not do a good job on explaing myself in that post and you rightfully called me out on it.

I started with the word unfortunately because even though I wish athletes would speak out against the games or some of them would boycott the negative energy should not be directed at them.

As far as people resenting the athletes I heard this a couple of times - today from my wife's friend and last Thursday at my office. That absolutely does not mean all Japanese people resent the athletes. In both cases the subject was a bit emotional (wife's friend - related to the reduction of flights and guys in the office just being ticked off in general about the IOC.

Perhaps it would be better said that because of the actions of the IOC and the Japanese governments it is likely some Japanese citizens may resent the athletes which would be unfortunate.

It says new bookings. Not old bookings.

Paul GToday  02:54 pm JST

Japan and the people wanted these Olympics so they now must take responsibility and make the sacrifices needed. Some might miss a summer holiday but traveling is now hard anyway. Japan still has the games so people should think they are lucky. The games will bring unity as said by Mr. Bach. Please think positively

15,000 deaths from COVID is not enough sacrifices for you, I see. You want more!?

The general public. What general public? What happened to the travel ban?

Cheat the system. Travel to Japan by ferry.

shogun36July 17  09:27 am JST

Hey government.

How about you guys just stop.

Don’t say anything, don’t do anything, don’t think about anything.

Just stop.

How about they just resign because they sure are not fulfilling their responsibilities to their citizens. They're not standing up to the pressuring IOC bullies. So they must not care at all, they don't give a rat's fanny.

Resign now.

Notice that the ministry is begging 'pleeeeeze'. Pleeeeeze be good boys and girls, all you airlines fatcats are don't let any more than 3400 passengers arrive here per week.

Say 'pretty please'. Do you think these airplanes are going to follow thru with this hokey?

I truly can't believe such namby-pamby butt kissing. They're caving in to the disgusting greed of the IOC with no concern for the local citizens whatsoever.

I'm already doing my part. I ain't going to patronize any of this insanity. I'm not watching a single second of this and I ain't buying any product endorsing this madness. And the IOC can stick it where the sun don't shine.