German Entrepreneur's Glamour Airline: Nicotine Niche or Pipe Dream?

Not that there's anything inherently unhealthy about tobacco smoke, insists Schoppmann, who adds that he doesn't believe a word of the warning labels printed on tobacco products. He's already gotten into a public spat with the World Health Organization, dismissing public health concerns over secondhand smoke as "the biggest scam of all times."

"I'm just another healthy smoker," said Schoppmann, who inhales about a pack a day. "I haven't seen a sick smoker in my life. The only thing I see are sick nonsmokers, and they are always sick with all sorts of crap."

Smintair picked Japan as its first destination for several reasons. First, it's a long flight -- about 12 hours one way, which is a long time for nicotine addicts to go without a fix. Second, the market has potential. About a third of all Japanese adults smoke, as do a quarter in Germany. Also, Duesseldorf has the third-biggest population of Japanese expatriates in Europe, with about 20,000 people.

"If they do go to Nagoya, it sounds great," said Tetsuo Oyama, a sales executive for the Hotel Nikko in Duesseldorf. "Personally, I'm a nonsmoker, so I wouldn't like a smoking flight. But as you know, lots of Asians do smoke and many Japanese might like this route."

There are still some skeptics who doubt Smintair will get off the ground. Schoppmann had originally promised to launch this summer; he said the primary hurdle has been a tight market for serviceable aircraft.

Hans-Henning Muehlke, a spokesman for the German Federal Aviation Commission, said Smintair is still in the early stages of applying for an operator's license and predicted it could take a year for approval. "We have to confirm that he's willing and fit, and can fulfill all the European regulations," Muehlke said.

There are no international regulations that prohibit smoking in the skies, although some countries, such as the United States, have banned it on passenger flights in their airspace. Most carriers voluntarily adopted no-smoking policies years ago. It's unclear whether Smintair might be affected by new German laws that restrict smoking in public places and are scheduled to go into effect this fall, Muehlke said.

Schoppmann, who has no previous experience in the aviation industry, said that he's the sole investor so far but that he has received approval for loan guarantees from the transport ministry in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

If Smintair's business does catch fire, Schoppmann has dreams to add routes to destinations such as the United States, Johannesburg, Sydney and Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Whether there are enough fliers willing to pay for the privilege of smoking in the skies remains to be seen.

"I don't find it comfortable when many people smoke in one place, like a lounge," said Monika Bense, 43, a smoker who was waiting for a flight to Tunisia. "Is it too much to ask for smokers not to light up for eight or 10 hours?"