Commercial services to resume at quake-hit Noto Airport on Saturday

The quake-hit Noto Airport in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, will resume services for commercial flights later this week, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Tuesday.

All Nippon Airways stated that it will restart services connecting Tokyo’s Haneda Airport and Noto Airport on Saturday.

During a meeting of the disaster response task force, Kishida said the government will compile a relief package on Thursday, vowing to “incorporate as many policies as possible from the viewpoint of sufferers.”

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told a news conference on Tuesday that the relief measures will likely include support for the tourism industry, in order to mitigate the impact of a spate of travel cancellations to the Hokuriku region, where Ishikawa is located.

ANA will operate temporary round-trip flights between Tokyo and Wajima three days a week until the end of February for those wanting to help with relief efforts in the quake-hit region. Before the disaster, there were two round-trip flights available every day.

In order to avoid a blizzard that has been forecast for the region over the next few days, ANA has decided to operate the first flight on Saturday.

Kishida has also instructed government officials to involve volunteer workers in relief operations. Local governments have been reluctant to accept volunteers, partly as a result of the infrastructure disruptions that occurred immediately after the devastating quake, which has claimed the lives of more than 230 people.

As of Monday, more than 15,000 residents were still living in shelters in Ishikawa. The prefectural government said it expects to secure enough temporary housing to accommodate them by the end of March, which would include public housing offered by local governments outside the prefecture.