On November 11, 2024, the Japanese start-up airline JCAS Airways announced that it raised 200 million yen (approximately 1.3 million dollars) as part of its Pre-Series A funding round, which brings its total raised to 650 million yen (4.2 million dollars).
The latest funding comes from nine companies (e.g., Sanin Central Television Broadcasting Co., Ltd., Sanko Co., Ltd., and Shimane Electric Group) based in the San’in, which includes the prefectures of Shimane and Tottori.
The focus on the San’in region follows the previous raise’s focus on Toyama Prefecture, both areas of Japan that JCAS Airways plans to serve.
“In order to launch, in addition to fundraising, aircraft procurement, and hiring, the most important thing is the ‘understanding and support from the destination area.’ We believe that this investment is a proof of that,” said Seiji Shirane and Yuki Umemoto, the company’s co-CEOs.
JCAS Airways plans to launch operations in 2026 and to initially serve Yonago and Tottori out of Osaka Kansai. Not unusually for a start-up airline, its launch has been delayed multiple times since the originally planned target of 2021. So far, the airline has signed a memorandum of understanding for the lease of one ATR72 with Singapore’s Avation. It plans to operate a fleet of seven aircraft on 16 routes within five years of launch.
