Economic growth in Asia is driving the emergence of colossal new airports in the region, pressing Narita to develop a strategy for successfully competing against those titans.

"We firmly believe that Narita has an unmatched strength in its role as a node connecting Asia and North America," Miyamoto boasted.

As of this past July 21, Narita hosted domestic and international routes linking 110 cities in 38 countries and regions (including stopovers), an expansive network that represents an important asset for Japan.

"We will strive to further enrich our network by maximizing the expansion of open skies agreements, new equipment and takeoff/landing slots. We are also looking to increase short-distance routes to Asia of under 4,000 km as Narita is seen as being deficient in such routes," Miyamoto said.

In terms of connecting flights, this strategy means that NAA will also further augment its domestic network as well. According to the flight schedule for this past summer, Narita had routes to 13 other key airports in Japan, and user convenience will further increase when AirAsia Japan and Jetstar Japan carry out their aforementioned plans to raise the number of domestic flights.

Narita is also aggressively working to enhance its services for visitors to Japan. For instance, last December it launched the smartphone application NariTra, which automatically translates spoken Japanese to English, Chinese or Korean, and vice versa. Provided at no charge, this service is designed to help foreign travelers experience a more pleasant stay in Japan.

"People from overseas might be worried to go to Japan due to the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami as well as the crisis of the nuclear power plants. I believe, however, that Japan is one of the countries worth going to. Visitors would experience much that is different from any other country, including cultural, culinary and hospitality aspects. So please come to Japan if you have never been here," Miyamoto said. "As a gateway to Japan, we will prepare the airport to make it more convenient for customers and welcome you with the latest services.

"We will continue pursuing all sorts of efforts for responding to diverse user needs and for making Narita an appealing airport that links all corners of the globe."

Guided by this vision, Narita promises further evolution and growth as an international hub for the Tokyo metropolitan area and East Asia.

The smartphone application NariTra is a free translation tool. NAA