Contents

Hello everyone! Thank you for taking time to read my blog post about Amakusa Airlines ATR42 from Fukuoka to Amakusa. Before we get started, I would like to remind everyone who prefers video reviews to watch the video version of my review here:

Amakusa is a small island in the south of Japan with roughly 83,000 inhabitants. In comparison, Nearby Fukuoka has over 1 million, and Kagoshima 800,000. Neither have their own airline, so why does Amakusa have one?

I flew Amakusa Airlines from Fukuoka to Amakusa last year to find out.

Amakusa Airlines has a single ATR 42. In fact are so few flight attendants with the company, that each one is listed in the homemade In flight magazine.

Introduction

The reason that Amakusa Airlines operates the ATR 42 is that Amakusa Airport, their main hub is way to small to host anything larger. The company originally sought to operate Saab 340s, however, Saab soon stopped making the type, and Amakusa Airlines was left with a Q400, which was recently replaced with the cute dolphin themed ATR 42 named misoka that currently operates their routes.

Boarding

This particular ATR42 has a 2-2 seating configuration with one flight attendant and a cargo section in the front. Because of this cargo section, We were boarded from the back.

Amakusa Boarding passes do not have bar codes. Instead, I was given a laminated slip to return after getting off the bus to the plane.

I have some cool pictures that I took of various planes from the ground in Fukuoka. I made a little collage here:

In flight service

Anyway, the flight attendant was super nice, and she even recognized me on the flight back from Fukuoka. Because this flight only lasted 25 minutes, service consisted of a small candy before takeoff.

Because there was only one flight attendant, the safety demo was played from a CD and our flight attendant showed all of us the saftey features from from the front.

After takeoff, we spent 25 minutes in the air and landed in Amakusa, where the runway felt uncomfortably short.

So, the question you’ve all been wanting for - Why does this airline exist?

A little more about Amakusa Airlines

Well, Amakusa is pretty isolated and driving isn’t always very practical, so Amakusa airlines was established. However, now Japan Airlines also has partnered with Amakusa, so it is unclear if this airline will still exist in a few years.

Conclusion

My flight with Amakusa Airlines was definetley something to remember. It was great to tick this airline off my bucket list, and I look foward to flying with them again soon.

Additional Pictures

Before we get to additional pictures, I have a small favor to ask of you. Please join my mailing list by clicking here. I will be happy to answer any of your questions at my email (tvmillehigh@gmail.com). Now, onto my pics!

Click on the arrows on each side to see the next picture