What happened
Alaska Airlines will start daily nonstop Boeing 737 MAX 8 flights from Anchorage to Tokyo Narita on May 13, 2027. Summer flying runs through September 7 from Anchorage, with the last return from Tokyo on September 8. Block time on the 3,434-mile sector is 8hr15min westbound and 7hr15min eastbound. After a fall pause the route returns three times a week in January 2028.
Outbound AS21 departs Anchorage at 2:10 p.m. and reaches Narita at 3:25 p.m. the following day. Return AS22 departs Narita at 9:45 p.m. and lands in Anchorage at noon. The jet is a domestically configured 737 MAX 8 with recliner first class rather than lie-flat seats and without seatback screens. Alaska will not use the lie-flat MAX 10 cabin it plans for 2028, and government approval is still required.
An introductory $999 roundtrip coach fare covers Anchorage-origin travel May 13 through June 7, 2027, if purchased by October 31, 2026. The nonstop avoids a Seattle or Vancouver connection that would roughly double travel time.
Book the $999 fare by October 31, 2026, if originating in Anchorage between May 13 and June 7, 2027, and do not count on the route until it clears government approval.
- Starts
- May 13, 2027
- Book by
- Oct 31, 2026
- Travel by
- Jun 7, 2027
- Numbers
- 3,434 miles: Anchorage–Tokyo Narita distance
- 8hr15min hours: westbound block time
- 7hr15min hours: eastbound block time
- $999: introductory coach roundtrip fare from Anchorage
- Where
- Anchorage (ANC), Tokyo Narita (NRT)
- Who qualifies
- The $999 introductory coach fare is for Anchorage-originating travel; the new flights are subject to government approval.
- Links
- Announcement Alaska Airlines Anchorage–Tokyo announcement news.alaskaair.com
- Takeaway
- Calendar the May 2027 launch if you need Anchorage–Tokyo, and Anchorage-origin passengers should check the $999 coach intro fare before the October 31 purchase cutoff.