After three years and six months, Korean Air has started flying again on its several routes to China and Japan, including Changsha, Wuhan, Weihai, Fukuoka, and Nagoya. Five weekly flights between Seoul Incheon Airport (ICN) and Changsha Huanghua International Airport (CSX) started up again on July 19. Routes from Seoul Incheon to Wuhan and Seoul Incheon to Weihai will resume operations on September 24. Korean Air will restart its flights on the Busan-Fukuoka and Busan-Nagoya routes on September 27 in support of the World Expo 2030 Busan. Busan will have daily flights to Nagoya and twice daily flights to Fukuoka. These routes will be covered by a B737-900ER with a 173-passenger capacity.
As demand for foreign travel rises, Korean Air is attempting to increase the number of its overseas flights. When compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019, the airline industry’s Available Seat Kilometers (ASK) capacity increased significantly from July 2023 to 82%.
There were numerous frequency increases in July on a variety of routes, including those in Europe, where airlines increased flight frequencies on the Incheon-Frankfurt route from 5 to 7 times per week and on the Incheon-Milan route from 3 to 4 times per week. The airline increased the frequency of flights on the Seoul Incheon-Chicago route in the North American region from 5 to 7 times each week. 4–5 times each week on the Seoul Incheon–Dallas route, and 7–9 times per week on the Seoul Incheon–San Francisco route.
Additionally, the airline is adding more flights each week on its routes to Ulaanbaatar, Sapporo, and Bali. In July, the frequency of flights between Seoul Incheon and Ulaanbaatar increased from seven to eight times per week, and starting in August, there will be ten flights per week. Since July, the airline has increased frequency between Seoul Incheon and Sapporo from 7 to 11 times per week, and by the end of August, it will boost flights from 9 to 11 times per week between Seoul Incheon and Bali, adding extra flights on Friday and Saturday.
Korean Air is making a slow but steady comeback internationally following the COVID 19 outbreak.
By: Rida Khan (Aviation Author)
Instagram A/c: aviationauthor.ridakhan
