Luxury loving Japan discovers the joy of flying cheap with arrival of 3 low cost carriers

NARITA, Japan – Low cost carriers are taking off in Japan with the arrival this year of AirAsia Japan, Peach Aviation and Jetstar Japan.

Airline officials and travelers say cheap flying may change lifestyles for Japanese who previously used flying mostly for business trips and special vacations.

Ticket prices are plunging by about half, to 16,000 yen ($200) trips to the southwestern resort island of Okinawa or a 5,000 yen ($60) hop to Seoul.

Low cost carriers may help revitalize Japan's 3 trillion yen ($38 billion) aviation market, which is the world's third largest, comprising about 5.5 percent of global traffic and 11 percent of industry revenues.