The drama started Feb. 10, when four board members of Japan Airlines Corp.'s international operations unit visited JAL President Toshiyuki Shinmachi with a petition carrying the signatures of some 50 managers. They urged him and two other executives to take responsibility for the JAL group's poor business performance by stepping down.
Since then, about 400 managers have signed the petition calling for the trio's resignations. JAL announced March 1 that Mr. Shinmachi will become chairman without the right to represent the company and the two other executives will step down. Vice President Haruka Nishimatsu, regarded as a compromise choice between the camp close to Mr. Shinmachi and the camp demanding his removal, will become president in June.
Despite the top-level reshuffle, it will not be easy for the holding company of the nation's top airline group to heal the wounds caused by internal strife. The infighting has taken place at a time when JAL has performed poorly amid soaring fuel prices and declining numbers of passengers -- the latter factor exacerbated by a series of safety problems.