Japan Airlines Corp. will step up efforts to woo individual domestic travelers to better compete with rival All Nippon Airways Co., JAL President Toshiyuki Shinmachi said in a recent interview.

"Revenue per passenger is greater for individual travelers than group passengers," said Shinmachi, who became president in June. "We are aiming to raise the level of individuals to 64 percent" from 63 percent in fiscal 2003.

JAL was created through a merger between Japan Airlines Co. and Japan Air System Co. in October 2002. The combined operation of JAL now splits the domestic market with ANA.