The robot ground crew experiment
Japan Airlines is gearing up to test humanoid robots as baggage handlers and cargo loaders at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, starting in May 2026. The pilot, which runs through 2028, is a direct response to a worsening human labor shortage that has left Japanese airports scrambling. Ground crew numbers across Japan dropped from 26,300 to 23,700 between March 2019 and September 2023. By December 2023, Narita Airport was reportedly unable to respond to more than 30 percent of requested flights each week due to a lack of cargo handlers and ground crew.
The airline’s subsidiary, JAL Ground Service, is partnering with GMO AI & Robotics Corporation to deploy two models: the Unitree G1 and the UBTECH Robotics Walker E. These robots have already been trialed in factories and warehouses, but airports present a far messier challenge — open environments with unpredictable human movements, tight turnaround times, and safety risks. A promotional video shows a G1 robot tottering up to a cargo container and making a vague pushing gesture, but the container only moved after a human worker activated a conveyor belt. The gap between marketing hype and real utility is still wide.
Safety and cost hurdles ahead
The first phase of the trial will focus on identifying which areas of Haneda Airport are safest for humanoid robots to operate. This is a critical step: Haneda is Japan’s second largest airport with flights arriving roughly every two minutes. Having robots share the tarmac and terminal with human workers introduces new collision and injury risks that no amount of staged demonstrations can fully predict.
Cost remains another barrier. While the Unitree G1 starts at $13,500 for the base model, humanoid robots typically run tens of thousands of dollars per unit. That is a steep investment for tasks that humans currently perform for far less. The real test is whether AI powered software can make these robots adaptable enough to justify the expense without requiring significant workplace modifications. If they fail, this experiment will be remembered as a costly distraction rather than a solution to Japan’s labor crisis.
Source: Arstechnica
