Just like everything else this year, the aviation industry has been witnessing some changes, too and in the major development, a Japanese airline has been thinking outside the box. Japan Airlines (JAL) will replace its “ladies and gentlemen” in-flight and airport announcements with gender-neutral greetings from October month. They will be ditching the usual greeting, “Ladies and Gentlemen”, and embracing the gender-neutral phrase, during in-flight and airport announcements. Adapting gender-neutral greetings will ensure a more inclusive environment.

“We have been promoting diversity in the community since 2014, and this is one of our actions taken to treat everyone equally regardless of gender,” Yutaro Iwasaki, publicist for JAL, told the outlet. From October, JAL “will abolish expressions that based on (two types of) sex and use the gender-friendly expression” like “good morning” and “good evening,” a spokesperson for the airline said.

The new mandate will be applicable for the announcements made in other languages as the ones made in Japanese are already gender-neutral. JAL will become the first Japanese carrier to embrace gender-neutral terms while welcoming its flyers. Same-sex marriage is not legally recognised in Japan but the government has gradually expanded rights protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender citizens in recent years.

But, this is not the first time that inclusivity in airlines has been a talking point. Several airlines around the world have made a similar change in recognition of non-binary and transgender customers. Air Canada and European low-cost carrier EasyJet said last year they would drop “ladies and gentlemen”. The Tokyo-based airline had, before this, moved for gender parity in March 2020, when it had announced that it would give its female flight attendants the option to wear trousers instead of skirts, just so they can feel more comfortable while on board.