Japan Airlines wants to help you leave your bag at home

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(CNN) — Don’t know what clothes to choose from your closet for a vacation in Japan? If you’re flying with Japan Airlines, the answer may be nothing.

The Japanese airline has launched a year-long trial of a service that allows travelers to reserve a range of clothing – spanning different styles and seasons – and have them delivered to the hotel upon arrival. At the end of the stay, the clothes are returned, washed, and re-entered the system.

Named “Any clothes, anywhere” The service will continue until the end of August 2024, and Japan Airlines says it can reduce carbon emissions by reducing the weight carried by its planes.

Any Wear, Anywhere calculates that saving around 10kg of luggage is equivalent to saving around 7.5kg of emissions, the equivalent of running a hairdryer for 10 minutes a day for 78 days.

“I love traveling, and I have been to many foreign countries, but I was always afraid to carry luggage or do laundry outside,” says Miho Moriya, who came up with the idea and runs the “Any Wear, Anywhere” program for Japanese company Sumitomo. Who takes care of bookings, deliveries and laundry.

He adds: “When I travel, the three most important things to me are accommodation, food and clothing.” “When we travel abroad, there are hotels and restaurants that provide accommodation and food on site, but not clothes. Why do we have to bring clothes from home?”

Clothes for all seasons

Moriah pitched the idea for the service through her company’s internal business challenge, and says that once it was approved, after a delay due to the pandemic, it took “many attempts” to find an airline willing to support it.

Users of the service connect to the site and choose from several options: women’s or men’s clothing, and in any season; Elegant or casual style. Number of highs and lows. And the dates of receipt and return. Your selections will be waiting for you at the hotel, with prices ranging from $34 to $48 for the entire rental period.

All clothing is used or comes from company surplus, although users cannot see this information about their selections. The service has been running since early July, and Moriah says the response has been very positive. “We have orders from all over the world and from more than 115 countries in total, even though we don’t do any kind of promotion,” he says, adding that the United States and Australia are the countries with the largest number of users.

The true impact of the testing will only be known in the end, when Japan Airlines calculates the weight savings and calculates the exact emissions reduction. “We have to see the final results before we can determine whether this service is sustainable or not,” says Maurya, adding that the calculations will take into account emissions from laundry and laundry deliveries.

Less weight and fewer emissions?

Weight reduction is a proven way to save fuel and reduce emissions, and has long been taken into account by aircraft manufacturers and airlines, for example by designing lighter seats for passengers or replacing heavy paper brochures with tablets. Even small changes can have a big impact: When Qantas redesigned its first and business class cutlery to be just 11% lighter, the company says it started saving 535 metric tons of fuel annually.

However, Japan Airlines should be able to see a statistically significant reduction in baggage weight, says Gary Crichlow, an aviation analyst at consulting firm AviationValues. “If they determine that passengers are indeed traveling with less baggage, they must then determine whether there is a causal relationship with the initiative,” he adds.

Once this is proven, the challenge will be to ensure that the lower weight actually translates into lower fuel consumption. “What matters from an emissions standpoint is how much fuel is burned by lifting the entire weight of the plane into the air and keeping it there until it lands in Japan,” he says.

“It does not matter whether the weight comes from passengers, baggage, cargo, crew or catering. Since aircraft real estate is very valuable, there will always be an economic incentive to compensate for the decrease in passenger baggage weight with additional weight.” This is not necessarily a bad thing. From a holistic point of view, if it leads to the most efficient use of the aircraft’s cargo capacity. But it seems to contradict the stated goal of the initiative. “Therefore, transparency regarding the actual weight saved per flight (if any), and the reduction in fuel burn as a result, will be key.”

Nina Jabbour, a sustainable fashion expert and educator, believes that the project represents a positive step. “Often people buy new clothes just for their holidays and business trips, so this service will reduce the waste of unnecessary clothes and the virgin resources used in manufacturing new clothes. It also takes advantage of excess stock and used clothes that usually go to waste,” he says. Landfill or incinerator.

“Extending the life of clothing with just another nine months of active use reduces carbon, water and waste footprints by about 20-30% each,” he adds.

Jabour believes that this initiative should be adopted by more airlines. “With global flights expected to reach 32.4 million passengers by 2023, the linen leasing model must be replicated by other airlines around the world if they are serious about supporting the circular economy and achieving sustainability goals,” he says.

Moriya shares this ambition and hopes to expand the partnership with Japan Airlines to other members of the OneWorld alliance, which includes American Airlines, British Airways and Qantas, and then to other alliances. “Our ultimate goal is to expand the service to include everyone,” he says.