Japan Airlines has been forced to completely cancel a heavily discounted flight promotion after demand for the campaign overwhelmed the carrier’s website.
In a bid to win back customers following the pandemic, Japan Airlines was offering domestic one-way tickets for just ¥6,600 ($48) as part of its ‘JAL Smiles’ promotion.
Tickets were meant to go on sale on March 9 for flights between April 14 and June 30, but a website which was designed specifically for the campaign crashed pretty much immediately after the tickets went on sale.
Japan Airlines initially told disappointed customers that it was working hard to fix the glitchy website but several hours later, the Tokyo-based carrier threw the towel in and decided to cancel the promotion altogether.
“We cannot foresee the possibility of recovery of the system problem,” the airline said in a statement. “We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause,” a Japan Airlines spokesperson continued.
The Japan Airlines website for regular ticket sales remained online at all times, and the airline says it will continue to sell dynamically priced discount fares, as well as promotional fares for international flights.
