Kansai Airport War

For those of you who live in Kansai, an interesting struggle is afoot. From the Japan Times:

「OSAKA — With resolutions and sharp words between their governors, Osaka and Hyogo prefectures stepped up their battle over Itami airport this week.

As the central government prepares to decide the fate of Kansai's three airports over the next couple of months, Osaka Gov. Toru Hashimoto is pushing for Itami, officially known as Osaka International Airport and the region's busiest and most-convenient hub, to be closed, while Hyogo Gov. Toshizo Ido wants it kept open...」

I usually use Itami airport when flying - have only used Kansai International (the other big airport in the region) once, and it took me almost two hours to travel between there and my apartment. So personally I'm hoping that Itami remains open for business.

Although if you skip ahead to the last sentence of the article, you'll see that this battle between the Osaka and Hyogo local governments is all but meaningless:

「Neither the governors nor the assemblies have any authority over the operations of Itami, which is managed by the central government.」