TOKYO, August 20, 2007 - ANA Group airlines carried 1.58 million passengers during the peak of the Japanese summer vacation period, which is based around the traditional Obon holiday and this year fell between Friday, August 10 and Sunday, August 19, 2007.

On a group basis, this can be broken down into over 1.4 million domestic and approximately 155,000 international passengers for the period.

Compared with the previous year, ANA Group airlines carried 10.5% more international passengers, the highest ever in ANA’s history for the summer vacation. North American destinations led in popularity with a growth of 26% year-on-year.

In Japan, the southernmost island of Okinawa and the northernmost island of Hokkaido proved to be the most popular spots with passengers.

Notes for editors
1) Obon is a Japanese Buddhist holiday during which ancestral spirits are said to return to their family homes. It is the peak holiday season of the summer, and falls around the middle two weeks of August.