[News] Fukada Kyoko to play an air traffic controller in new drama ‘TOKYO AIRPORT’.

[News] Fukada Kyoko to play an air traffic controller in new drama ‘TOKYO AIRPORT’.
Cr. - http://www.tokyohive.com/

On August 31st, Fuji TV announced another fall drama called ‘TOKYO AIRPORT ~Tokyo Kukou Kansei Hoanbu~‘ (lit. ~Tokyo Airport Air Traffic Services Department~) starring actress Fukada Kyoko.

The drama is set at the Tokyo International Airport (Haneda Airpot), and Fukada plays an enthusiastic rookie air traffic controller. She commented, “Please pay attention to the air traffic controllers and their great efforts and teamwork to protect the sky above Japan from behind the scenes. I’m very ambitious about this drama and will focus all my energy on this role.”

Air traffic controllers direct all aircraft traffic at airports. It’s the first drama on broadcast television to focus on the job of such a controller and to depict the work that happens within a control tower.

The original script for ‘TOKYO AIRPORT’ was written by Uda Manabu, who already created another air traffic controller drama called ‘TOKYO CONTROL‘ for Fuji TV’s pay-TV satellite channel ‘Fuji TV NEXT‘ in 2011. Fukada is playing a woman named ‘Shinoda Kaori’ who was working as a ground staff member at the airport. After receiving her state examination and going through a strict training period at the Aeronautical Safety College, she eventually becomes an air traffic controller just before turning thirty.

Haneda Airport is the busiest airport of Japan with at least one aircraft taking off or landing every two minutes. In one year, it handles around 62,000,000 passengers (around 170,000 per day), which makes it almost impossible not to face various troubles and difficulties every day.

In the first episode of the drama, ‘Shinoda’ almost causes a serious accident because of a careless mistake. Everyone in the control tower has to be absolutely concentrated, especially when bad weather is making their work more difficult than it already is; after all, they are protecting the lives of millions of people. There is more than enough material for a thrilling and fast-paced human drama, with each episode featuring realistic scenarios that have already happened at airports.

The filming is going to begin in mid-September and will be set at various places inside Haneda Airport. Fukada will also get the opportunity to enter the actual control tower and observe professional air traffic controllers in action.

Producer Sekiguchi Daisuke (‘Tokyo Control’, ‘Happy Flight’) commented, “The pass rate for air traffic controllers is said to be 1%. I couldn’t think of anyone else other than Fukada, who has recently become more mature and charming than ever, to play a woman tackling a job in which she has to protect millions of people.”

The co-workers of ‘Shinoda’ will be played by Sasaki Nozomi, Kaname Jun, Seto Koji, Seto Asaka, Tokito Saburo, and others.

Fuji TV is going to air ‘TOKYO AIRPORT ~Tokyo Kukou Kansei Hoanbu~’ every Sunday at 9:00 pm, starting sometime in October.