Goodwill tour of the "Yokoso Japan" airship

17 Jun 04

The "Yokoso Japan" airship

The ��׺okoso Japan�ߡ�airship is scheduled to fly over London on June 20 and 21 as a part of its goodwill tour to promote the Japanese government's ��׷isit Japan Campaign (VJC)�ߡ� The airship will travel across Europe for one month before making its way to its new home in Japan. Its route will cover France, Switzerland, Luxemburg, the Netherlands and Russia among other countries. As well as the VJC, the airship will also promote the Aichi Expo 2005.

The 75 metre-long airship will fly to London from Calais and can be seen over the River Thames as it travels from Greenwich to Wimbledon and back on both days. It will not be landing in London due to technical reasons, but is expected to fly at about 300-500 metres above the River Thames.

��׺okoso�ߡ�means ����elcome�ߡ�and is the word that has been adopted as the VJC's logo. The Japanese government is currently making a concerted effort to transform Japan into a major tourist destination. As part of this endeavour, Prime Minister Koizumi launched the Visit Japan Campaign (VJC) in April 2003 to promote the multifaceted positive aspects of Japan to entice foreign tourists. Particular emphasis is being placed on highlighting Japan's natural beauty, traditional history and unique culture. It is hoped that more people in European countries will become aware of the VJC after seeing the airship.

During the flight of the airship, a crew from the Japan Broadcasting Corporation is planning to film the UNESCO World Heritage Sites en route in order to produce archive footage.

(Please note: In the event of bad weather, the airship's flight over London will be subject to cancellation.)

The airship over Friedrichshafen, Germany

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