The airline was established on 1 July[citation needed] 1983[4] and started operations in December 1983. A joint investment plan with public and private investors in fourteen Kagoshima Prefecture municipalities established Japan Air Commuter.At the time JAC was an affiliate of Toa Domestic Airlines, later known as Japan Air System.In the 1990s JAC had its headquarters in the Kagoshima Airport Building Annex in Mizobe, Aira District, Kagoshima Prefecture. Japan Air System later merged into Japan Airlines. Japan Air Commuter has 471 employees (at March 2007) and is owned by Japan Airlines (60%) and 14 local municipalities of the Amami Islands and Kagoshima (40%). Due to the restructuring plan of Japan Airlines, Arata Yasujima was promoted to president of Japan Air Commuter on February 1, 2010.Yasujima replaces Masaru Onishi, who was promoted to president of JAL.