“This arrival marks a special partnership with ZIPAIR and a special moment in Orlando International’s history,” said Lance Lyttle, CEO of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, which manages Orlando International and Orlando Executive airports. “Orlando and Tokyo are two of the world’s most visited destinations. I am hopeful that this connection will help to enrich cultural ties and create more opportunities for robust economic activity.”

“Today’s arrival of ZIPAIR’s Flight 714 is the culmination of promoting Orlando as a viable route for the past 30 years,” said Vicki Jaramillo, Chief Commercial Officer for GOAA. “This work could not have been done without the incredible Air Service Development team and partners such as Mickeynet, Visit Orlando, Experience Kissimmee, and others who remained steadfast in recruiting an airline to service the Asia Pacific.”

Airport staff marked the occasion with a press conference that featured Mark Morimoto, Regional Director of Marketing and Sales for ZIPAIR, and Jeff van Langeveld, Vice President, International Marketing & Sales, Disney Destinations. Tokyo and Orlando are both Disney destinations, and today’s arrival of 280 passengers from Tokyo brought dozens of Disney enthusiasts.

ZIPAIR passengers were greeted by a water salute on the runway, and live music and refreshments in Terminal C.

Arriving passengers enjoyed the festivities and the chance to take the inaugural flight.

“It was incredible. Easy, no complaints and I definitely recommend it,” said Christina Whisnant of New Smyrna Beach. “I’ll be going over more often now that I know there’s good snowboarding in Hokkaido so it’s a nice way to get to Tokyo, roam around and then get to Hokkaido.”

The announcement about ZIPAIR’s charter service was made in October at a press conference in Tokyo. Both MCO and ZIPAIR leadership anticipate that the charter service will lay a foundation for additional flights between the two destinations.

During the past few years, international traffic at MCO has grown – resulting in approximately 1.4 million more international visitors in 2025 than in 2023.

As Florida’s busiest airport, the 9^th busiest airport in the U.S., and the world’s 25^th busiest, MCO could be on the brink to welcome even more international visitors in 2026.

Today’s nonstop flight is attractive to business and leisure passengers who desire a direct connection between the Orlando and Tokyo regions. The first charter service route has four roundtrip flights operating today, February 28, March 5, and March 10. All flights will depart Narita International Airport during the afternoon and arrive in Orlando in the afternoon; flights departing Orlando during the afternoon will arrive in Tokyo in the evening. For more information or tickets, please visit ZIPAIR.

To see highlights of today’s inaugural flight, download images via WeTransfer here.