New airline to begin operation in May 2008 to China
and South East Asia
SEOUL, Korea (November 26, 2007) – Korean Air disclosed
details on its low cost carrier operation plans through a corporate filing
to Korea’s Financial Supervisory Office today.
The new LCC, tentatively named ‘Air Korea’ will begin operation in May
2008. At a board meeting held on Friday, November 23, Korean Air approved
plans to invest 20 billion Korean Won to establish a separate corporate
body for the LCC within December.
Air Korea will use Incheon International Airport as its base airport.
Starting May 2008, it will launch routes to destinations in China’s Shandong
and Hainan Provinces, which is under open skies agreement between Korea
and China and thus do not limit airlines’ route operations. Air Korea
will also open routes to Japan (except Tokyo), Thailand and Malaysia,
all also under open skies. It gradually plans to widen its network to
other short-or-mid-distance destinations.
Korean Air first announced its intentions to establish a low cost carrier
in early June this year to proactively face the developing trends in the
Asian airline industry, providing quality transportation service at a
lower price for the benefit of the fast-growing traveling public.
For operation, Air Korea will secure three A300s and two B737s. Aircraft
maintenance and operation training will be outsourced to Korean Air, which
has nearly 40 years experience in both fields. This outsourcing will ensure
the operational safety of Air Korea, which has been indicated as a problem
in some other low cost airlines.
Air Korea, maintaining global standards in terms of safety and operation
while providing customers with tickets at a lower fare, will offer travelers
with a better choice for economic travel. Korean Air and Air Korea, a
separately operated subsidiary, will complement each other for a win-win
relationship. Korean Air shall retain its global image and concentrate
on upper class business travel demands and Air Korea shall focus on travelers
seeking shorter distance leisure travel routes.
About Korean Air
Korean Air was named the Best First/Business Class Airline and the Best
Frequent Flyer Program in TIME Readers’ Travel Choice Awards 2006. In
April and July 2007 respectively, the carrier was named the Best Economy
Class in the OAG Airline of the Year Awards and the Skytrax 2006/7 World
Airline Awards. It was voted Best Asia/Transpacific Business Class Service
by Business Traveler magazine in 2006. With its excellent financial performance
in 2005, Korean Air received the "Phoenix Award" from Air Transport
World (ATW) for its success in overcoming challenges in the global airline
industry.
Korean Air, with a fleet of 124 aircraft, is one of the world's top 20
airlines, and operates almost 400 passenger flights per day to 115 cities
in 37 countries. It is a founding member of SkyTeam, the global airlines
alliance - partnering Aeroflot, AeroMexico, Air France, Alitalia, CSA
Czech Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, KLM and Northwest
Airlines to provide customers with extensive worldwide destinations, flights
and services. More on Korean Air's programs, routes, frequency and partners
is available at www.koreanair.com
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