Commenting on Japan Airlines’ Bob Atkinson, travel expert at travelsupermarket.com

“Although customers will not see any immediate changes to existing flight booking with Japan Airlines (JAL), the long term impact on British travellers to Japan and beyond could be significant.  Oneworld has today confirmed that JAL will continue to operate as normal, including all the benefits of being a member of the alliance.

“There has been much speculation around whether JAL will remain a member of the Oneworld Alliance in the long term or opt for an alternative deal with the Star Alliance or even Sky Team.  Should JAL leave the Oneworld Alliance, of which British Airways (BA) is a member, British travellers will no longer benefit from the code sharing deals available to BA and its customers, leaving Oneworld seriously damaged.

“JAL’s situation may well have resulted from conditions similar to those BA has been facing; both companies operate with high cost structures and continue to experience high pension deficits.  In order to recover costs, 15,000 members of JAL’s staff have already been earmarked for redundancy.  Inevitably, this will mean an overall review of operations, with the possible reduction in routes and services offered by the airline which will, again, impact on the consumer.”