The CEO of Japan Airlines is taking a 30% pay cut for two months after a high profile incident where flight attendants drank too much before their flight. Other responsible senior executives are taking pay cuts as well. This is a rare case of personal accountability by executives in the airline industry – but one that’s become a common refrain at Japan Airlines.
Prior to a May 23, 2026 flight from Hiroshima to Tokyo Haneda, two cabin crew drank during their layover. The senior crewmember had joined the airline in 1992, and had just been promoted to chief purser. The other flight attendant had been with the airline for seven years.
- They began drinking around 5:30 p.m. the night before. Rules forbid drinking within 12 hours of duty, but they continued 2.5 hours past the cutoff. They say they drank two beers and two small white wines, but twelve hours later the senior crewmember still reportedly blew ~ 0.05.
That’s above the FAA 0.04 threshold and 2.6x the Japanese regulatory threshold of 0.09 mg/L. (The junior flight attendant blew at the legal limit and said she was unfit to work.)
- The senior flight attendant delayed the required test reporting until the airport, instead of doing so at the hotel, hoping her alcohol reading would fall – though it had quite a lot of falling to do. Both crew reportedly made false statements to the airline about their drinking.
Japanese regulators characterized this as a failure of the airline’s safety management systems because other cabin crew had repeatedly urged the senior flight attendant to do the required check but the company did not promptly escalate the situation. The flight was delayed about 42 minutes to replace the flight attendants.
The pursur was fired and the junior crewmember was suspended. And the airline banned layover drinking by its 6,000 flight attendants in response to the incident.
And now airline CEO Mitsuko Tottori will take a 30% pay cut for two months. The head of inflight will take 20% for one month. And all other directors and executive officers, including outside directors, take a 10% reduction for one month.
On June 12, the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB) issued a “stern warning” to Japan Airlines (JAL/JL, 9201) regarding a cabin crew drinking incident that occurred in May…
As a punishment for its executives, JAL decided to reduce the salaries of all executives, including President Mitsuko Tottori. In addition, a female employee in her 50s, A, who was a senior cabin attendant (Chief Cabin Attendant), was dismissed, and a female employee in her 30s, B, who was drinking with A, was suspended.
Japanese Crew Are Tested Before And After Every Trip
U.S. airline crew are randomly tested for alcohol and illegal substances.
Since 2018, following the Heathrow drunk pilot scandal, Japanese pilots have been tested before and after each trip. Flight attendants, mechanics and dispatchers were added to the alcohol testing regime in 2019.
Japan Airlines requires tests before and after the series of flights using a company detector, and incorporates and facial recognition other anti-impersonation measures as well as third-party monitoring of results.
This isn’t done before and after every flight but rather every series of consecutive flights (a layover of more than two hours requires testing).
Credit: Japan Airlines
JAL Leadership Keeps Taking Pay Cuts For This
It’s usually the pilots at Japan Airlines that have caused a (shaken, not) stir over drinking prior to flight departure. And several times senior executives have taken responsibility through pay cuts.
- In 2018, a Japan Airlines pilot was arrested at London Heathrow for being almost 10 times the legla alcohol limit before a flight to Tokyo. The airline’s then-President took a 20% pay cut for three months.
- More recently, two pilots preparing to fly Melbourne – Tokyo Narita in January 2025 drank excessively, tried to manipulate alcohol checks, and wound up delaying the flight by more than three hours. The airline’s CEO Mitsuko Tottori and its chairman each took 30% pay cuts for two months. Three other executives were disciplined, and a safety official removed from duty.
- Then in September 2025 a Honolulu flight was delayed nearly 19 hours due to a pilot’s drinking. JAL cut pay for 37 executives, including the CEO taking a 30% cut for two months, and others taking 10% -20% cuts.
- These incidents came after the the Dallas April 2024 case where a drunk pilot’s big night of drinking at the crew’s layover hotel led to police being called at 2 a.m. and a cancelled flight.
This is framed as the top executives ‘taking a pay cut’ but since it happens over and over that’s probably equivalent to their real base salary being meaningfully lower than the reported salary, with a built-in bonus for not having these kinds of incidents. It’s just that the CEO doesn’t often earn that bonus!
Credit: Japan Airlines
This Level Of Executive Accountability Is Unusual
As Japan Airlines struggled in 2006, its then-CEO cut his own perks and then in 2007 cut his salary down to $90,000. He said that unhappy customers shouldn’t blame the employees they’re dealing with, they should blame the person in charge.
Good executives own their failures, just as they’re rewarded for their successes. Good companies arrange their institutions and incentives so that this is the case – rather than packing their boards with cronies who reward failure as much as success.
Japan Airlines is in a antitrust-immunized, revenue-sharing joint venture across the Pacific with American Airlines. That’s basically a marger, designed around foreign ownership rules for airlines.
It was striking two years ago when underperforming American Airlines CEO Robert Isom was awarded $32 million (as a workaround for having honored government bailout rules on airline executive pay). And then when the company’s performance feel even further – with profit dropping 87% in 2025 – Isom’s pay fell only 11%. There’s no falling on their swords at American!
They have brought great shame to themselves and their families.
Woah, so, CEOs actually taking responsibility? But, but… I thought they’re just supposed to act as mercenaries for oligarchs, while screwing over their workers and consumers. Huh. Wild.
That’s how it works in a high trust
Non-diverse society.
@Jay Gee — Ahh, so bigotry is solution… /s
@1990
As in 99% of your comments that miss the mark, the straw men you put up so you can knock them down, make no sense.
I will give you credit for the 1% you get right somehow.
@Jay Grr — What’s a strawman? /s
“Good executives own their failures” – Not in the USA and certainly not in the American airline industry. The failures of major USA airline CEOs are epic and legion in this decade alone. Ironic that the U.S. considers itself the leader in business but our large companies’ “leaders” refuse to show leadership when things go south. It’s refreshing to see executives that actually possess integrity. Outside of Apple and Berkshire I can’t think of a domestic company that’s run with brains and integrity. How sad is that for what once was The Land Of The Free And The Home Of The Brave?
@Christian — 100%. Golden-parachutes for American CEOs; socialism for the rich; rugged individualism for all else. *sigh*
Only the naive or stupid applaud such obvious face saving measures. The executives were in no way responsible, but some retards here view anything that an employee does wrong as the CEO’s fault. This kind of measure only works in a country like Japan, where shame is a powerful tool. As we know, US FAs are shameless, if the CEO here cut his own pay because of a FA doing something stupid, that would just encourage them to do it more.
@Mantis — Yeah, yeah… ‘greed is good’… but, that first film doesn’t end well for Gekko (he went to prison). And, I doubt you prefer the 2010 ‘redemption story’ sequel, either.
US airline CEOs are happy to take credit (and earn 8-figure bonuses) for the hard work of those flight attendants when times are good. But, the second a systemic issue or bad press hits? (No, no, no, that’s not *their* fault… it’s those greedy, lazy workers… /s)
If you think US employees are ‘shameless,’ look at who is steering the ship. True leadership means owning the failures of your organization, not just hoarding the rewards and treating accountability like a *cough* foreign *cough* concept.
(Anyway, nighty-night over there in Asia, Dr. Toboggan…)
Wow they can actually fire incompetent workers over there?? Here they would get 1 year backpay for this
@Elite — People are fired for-cause all the time in the US; what’s different here is that a CEO is holding themselves accountable; that basically never happens here.
Smeizek (?) and JFK with the port authority. And then a golden parachute “walk of shame.”
THAT’S the American way.
Kirby’s 90 % (less than or equal to) pay raise?
After he dipped out of the East Coast on a private jet to one of his many mansions while United is in a meltdown?
No?
Anyone?
A drunk employee on a layover that is still drunk upon check-in should take the 10-30% pay cut and consider that lucky. Instead of being immediately fired.
But, Americans seem to have a lack of accountability. Sh** rolls down hill fast, and every jerk off is waiting to throw someone under the bus to get ahead, and ass kissing is everywhere.
Mantis, I don’t think Japanese workplace culture is particularly healthy, but I also don’t share your cynicism here. Consider that FAs are being collectively punished (no layover drinking) for the irresponsible actions of their colleagues. It’s not unreasonable for leadership to position this as: you didn’t do anything wrong, I didn’t do anything wrong, but I’ll feel this right alongside you. Of course it’s largely symbolic, but optics do matter in leadership.