In a move that has surprised countless fans of the classic Kyoto Animation animated series, and the comic strip by Kakifly on which it was based, the national flag carrier of Iceland announced on X (formerly Twitter) that a third season of the K-On! anime would be released exclusively on Icelandair in-flight entertainment (IFE) systems from June to November 2025, beginning just in time for the Nordic island’s tourism high season, and ending just in time for the Iceland Airwaves music festival. The announcement of the exclusive anime came shortly after Icelandair’s earlier announcement that the airline would begin making direct flights from Keflavík to Kansai — the airline’s first destination in East Asia.

K-On! season 3, also known by its Icelandic title Rokkstúlkurnar, is to be an “ambitious multinational project” which will “bolster the tourism and creative industries of two famous island nations”, the anime’s official website states. Characters Mugi, Ritsu, Yui, and Mio, now in their early 20s, find themselves studying abroad in Iceland and working part-time jobs together at a petrol station on Laugavegur under the supervision of Georg Bjarnfreðarson of Næturvaktin fame. At the same time, the girls see famous sights of Iceland, and practice music with famous Icelandic musicians such as Björk (co-performing the ending theme) and Bubbi Morthens (co-performing the opening theme), in preparation for their band Ho-kago Tea Time’s big performance at the annual Iceland Airwaves music festival. The real-life Ho-kago Tea Time, consisting of the characters’ voice actresses, will perform at the festival in real life as well.

Episodes of K-On! season 3 will be released three at a time on the first of every month, each episode having a 30 minute runtime. The season’s total runtime will then be 9 hours across 18 episodes.

Industry commentators have questioned the purpose and efficacy of this “publicity stunt”, considering whether an eighteen-episode IFE-exclusive anime will be effective enough at promoting tourism and the Iceland Airwaves music festival to be worth the cost for the parties involved, and whether making the anime IFE-exclusive might alienate fans of the series. Other commentators theorize that the anime serves to distract from criticisms of Icelandair’s carbon footprint and contributions to overtourism.

Nevertheless, many fans of K-On! expressed joy and cautious optimism following the announcement.