Air travel has always been an important
part of my life. The massive amount of
traveling I have been able to do is mostly due to some great retirement benefits
Okasan received from her years with American Airlines. Because of this, we were able to fly standby
all over the world. Later, I also worked
for American, but only for a short time.
I worked in baggage, so I learned the ins, outs, and secrets of the
things that go on after your bag disappears behind the counter. It was a physical job, though, and incredibly
inflexible for the low man on the totem pole, so it only lasted about six months
before I left to work in education. So I
know a thing or two about airlines.
Which is why I was incredibly impressed with domestic air travel in
Japan.
I have done the majority of my
traveling within Japan by train. It is efficient,
comfortable, convenient, and a bit of a novelty for an American. I enjoy watching the landscape zip past, the
brief glimpses of towns and communities at each stop. But recently I found it necessary to
fly. In less than a month, I had gone
from no domestic flights to four. All to
the same places – Osaka to Narita and back – but on two different carriers –
JetStar and Peach.
As with most things in Japan, I
was impressed with the efficiency and degree of customer service provided by Japanese
companies. Check in was quick and
easy. The staff were helpful and
friendly. Instructions were given
Japanese and English (this was especially well done by JetStar who had very
proficient bilingual cabin crew). The
ground crew even bowed and waved as we taxied away from the gate. I found this especially nice since I only
waved to a handful of people, mostly children, when I was escorting planes.
But perhaps the most shocking differences
of my air travels in Japan was the difference in airport security.
America is a frightened
nation. I have come to realize we are afraid,
sometimes overly so, when it comes to children and families. Some very terrible things have happened in
America – I grew up in a world with child abductions, school shootings,
terrorist attacks, and so much violence.
So it is always jarring for me when the safety measures and general fear
I have become accustomed to are suddenly gone.
At first I am shocked and nervous.
But then I get a little euphoric – this is what trust is, this is the
freedom and innocence that have slowly disappeared over my lifetime. Nowhere have I felt this more than at the
domestic terminal at KIX. I did not have
to cram all my liquids into a tiny quart bag.
I did not have to take off my shoes and worry about my privacy being
violated by x-rays or pat downs. I didn’t
even have to throw out my grande latte, the only thing keeping me upright for
our early morning flight. Just open the
top and give the security personnel a cursory sniff of the contents. Now there were still prohibited items – gas,
knives, explosives, etc. – but so many of the rules and hoops I have come to
expect with air travel were just not there.
Sadly, as Japan moves to take a
bigger role on the world stage, I am afraid this sense of safety will slowly
erode. A man recently set himself on
fire on a shinkansen train, killing himself and one other and injuring over a
dozen. Two Japanese citizens were
beheaded by terrorists last year. The
country has been rocked by the murders of several junior high students this
spring and summer. The image of a preternaturally
safe Japan may be fading somewhat in today’s hyper connected and disenfranchised
society, but as an American used to much worse, the feeling of safety and trust
I find in Japan are a breath of fresh air.
It also means I don’t have to figure in quite so much time for getting
through security when I decide to fly.
