Korean Air

This article is about South Korea's flag carrier, Korean Air. For other airlines based in South Korea, see list of airlines of South Korea.

Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd.
주식회사 대한항공
Jusikhoesa Daehan Hanggong
IATA ICAO Call sign
KE KAL KOREAN AIR[1]
FoundedJune 1962; 62 years ago (1962-06)
Commenced operations1 March 1969; 55 years ago (1969-03-01)
Hubs
Focus cities
Frequent-flyer programSKYPASS
Alliance
Subsidiaries
Fleet size167[3]
Destinations108[4]
Parent companyHanjin Group
Traded asKRX: 003490
Headquarters260 Haneul-gil, Gangseo District, Seoul, South Korea
Key peopleWalter Cho (Chairman & CEO)
Woo Kee-Hong (President)
RevenueIncrease US$29,760 million (2023)
Operating incomeIncrease US$492,521 million (2023)
Net incomeIncrease US$88,876 million (2023)
Total assetsIncrease US$224,351 million (2023)
Employees20,000
Websitekoreanair.com
Notes
Financials As of 27 December 2023.
References:[5]
Korean name
Hangul
대한항공
Hanja
大韓航空
Revised RomanizationDaehan Hanggong
McCune–ReischauerTaehan Hanggong

Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd. (KAL; Korean: 주식회사 대한항공; RR: Jusikhoesa Daehan Hanggong) is the flag carrier of South Korea and its largest airline based on fleet size, international destinations, and international flights. It is owned by the Hanjin Group.

The present-day Korean Air traces its history to March 1, 1969, when the Hanjin group acquired government-owned Korean Air Lines, which had operated since June 1962.[6] Korean Air is a founding member of SkyTeam alliance and SkyTeam Cargo. As of 2024, it is one of the 10 airlines ranked 5-star airline by Skytrax,[7] and the top 20 airlines in the world in terms of passengers carried and is also one of the top-ranked international cargo airlines.

Korean Air's international passenger division and related subsidiary cargo division together serve 126 cities in 44 countries. Its domestic division serves 13 destinations. The airline's global headquarters is located in Seoul, South Korea. The airline had approximately 20,540 employees as of December 2014.[8]

The airline was, around 1999, known as "an industry pariah, notorious for fatal crashes" due to its poor safety record and a large number of incidents and accidents.[9] The airline's reputation has significantly improved by 2009 as it has focused investment on improving its safety record including by hiring consultants from Boeing and Delta Air Lines.[10]

In November 2020, it was announced that Korean Air would merge with competitor Asiana Airlines and the merger was completed on December 12, 2024.[11][12]

History

A Korean National Airlines Douglas DC-4 at Oakland in 1953

Founding

In 1962, government of the Republic of Korea acquired Korean National Airlines, which was founded in 1946, and changed its name to Korean Air Lines to become a state-owned airline. On 1 March 1969, the Hanjin Group acquired the state-owned airline and it is the beginning of Korean Air.[13][14] Long-haul trans-pacific freight operations were introduced on April 26, 1971, followed by passenger services to Los Angeles International Airport on April 19, 1972.[15]

Expansion

A Korean Air Boeing 707 at Fukuoka Airport in August 1987 with a previous livery. This aircraft is the only Boeing 707 ordered by Korean Air from Boeing, and destroyed in 1987 as Korean Air Flight 858.

Korean Air operated international flights to destinations such as Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, and Los Angeles with Boeing 707s until the introduction of the Boeing 747 in 1973. In that year, the airline introduced Boeing 747s on its trans-Pacific routes and started a European service to Paris, France using the 707 and then McDonnell Douglas DC-10. In 1975, the airline became one of the earliest Asian airlines to operate Airbus aircraft with the purchase of three Airbus A300s, which were put into immediate service on Asian routes.[16] In 1981, Korean Air opened its cargo terminal at Los Angeles International Airport.[13] Since South Korean aircraft were prohibited from flying in the airspace of North Korea and the Soviet Union at the time, the European routes had to be designed eastbound from South Korea, such as Seoul ~ Anchorage ~ Paris.

Change to 'Korean Air'

A blue-top, silver and redesigned livery with a new corporate "Korean Air" logo featuring a stylized Taegeuk design was introduced on March 1, 1984, and the airline's name changed to Korean Air from Korean Air Lines. This livery was introduced on its MD-80s and Boeing 747-300s. It was designed in cooperation between Korean Air and Boeing. In the 1990s, Korean Air became the first airline to use the new McDonnell Douglas MD-11 to supplement its new fleet of Boeing 747-400 aircraft; however, the MD-11 did not meet the airline's performance requirements and they were eventually converted to freighters. Some older 747 aircraft were also converted for freight service. In 1984, Korean Air's head office was in the KAL Building on Namdaemunno, Jung District, Seoul.[13][14][17]

Checkered safety culture and record

Wreckage of the fatal Korean Air Flight 801 in 1997

Korean Air was once notorious for its abysmal safety record and high rate of fatal crashes.[18][19][20][21] In 1999, Korea's President Kim Dae-jung described the airline's safety record as "an embarrassment to the nation" and chose Korean Air's smaller rival, Asiana, for a flight to the United States.[22]

Between 1970 and 1999, Korean Air wrote off 16 aircraft due to serious incidents and accidents with the loss of over 700 lives.[23] In the case of Korean Air Flight 801, the National Transportation Safety Board unanimously concluded that the airline's inadequate pilot training contributed to the pilot error that caused the fatal crash.[24]

In 1999, Delta Air Lines suspended its code-sharing relationship with Korean Air explicitly citing its poor safety record following the fatal crash of Korean Air Cargo Flight 6316. It marked the first time safety was explicitly cited as the reason for stopping a major code-sharing alliance by an airline.[25] Other partners including Air Canada and Air France followed suit.

In 2001, the Federal Aviation Administration downgraded South Korea's aviation safety rating and blocked South Korean carriers from expanding into the United States after the country and its carriers failed to improve sufficiently following a warning the previous year.[26] The move was driven by the country's lax oversight of its carriers including Korean Air.[27]

The rating has since been restored as the airline invested billions of dollars to improve safety, upgrade its fleet, install new technology, and overhaul its corporate culture including hiring consultants from Boeing and Delta Air Lines.[10] In 2002, the New York Times noted that Korean Air had been removed from many "shun lists".[18]

Korean Air Lines Boeing 747SP at EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg in 1985
Korean Air takes delivery of its first Airbus A380 at Toulouse–Blagnac Airport, France, May 25, 2011.

Early 21st century

On 23 June 2000, along with Aeroméxico, Air France and Delta Air Lines, Korean Air founded major airline alliance, SkyTeam and SkyTeam Cargo, founded on 28 September 2000.[23][28]

On 5 June 2007, Korean Air said that it would create a new low-cost carrier called Jin Air in Korea to compete with Korea's KTX high-speed railway network system, which offered cheaper fares and less stringent security procedures compared to air travel. Jin Air started scheduled passenger service on July 17, 2008. Korean Air announced that some of its 737s and A300s would be given to Jin Air.

In mid-2010, a co-marketing deal with games company Blizzard Entertainment sent a 747-400 and a 737-900 taking to the skies wrapped in StarCraft II branding. In August 2010, Korean Air announced heavy second-quarter losses despite record-high revenue.[29] In August 2010, Hanjin Group, the parent of KAL, opened a new cargo terminal at Navoiy International Airport in Uzbekistan, which will become a cargo hub with regular Seoul-Navoi-Milan flights.[30]

In 2013, Korean Air acquired a 44% stake in Czech Airlines.[31] It sold the stake in October 2017. On 1 May 2018, the airline launched a joint venture partnership with Delta Air Lines.[32]

In 2019, Korean Air began playing a safety video with the K-pop group SuperM.[33] It featured the song "Let's go everywhere", which was to be released as a single.[34] The airline also featured the group on a livery sported by a Boeing 777-300ER, with registration HL8010.[35][36]

In 2023, Korean Air was certified a 5-star Airline by Skytrax, an air transport rating organization.[37]

Nut rage incident

Main article: Nut rage incident

Cho Hyun-Ah, also known as "Heather Cho", is the daughter of then-chairman Cho Yang-ho. She resigned from some of her duties in late 2014 after she ordered a Korean Air jet to return to the gate to allow a flight attendant to be removed from the aircraft. The attendant had served Cho nuts in a bag instead of on a plate. As a result of further fallout, Cho Hyun-Ah was later arrested by Korean authorities for violating South Korea's aviation safety laws.[38]

Merger with Asiana Airlines

Main article: Merger of Korean Air and Asiana Airlines

In November 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, the South Korean Government officially announced that Korean Air will acquire Asiana Airlines.[39] The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport of the Republic of Korea will integrate subsidiaries Air Busan, Air Seoul and Jin Air to form a combined low-cost carrier which will focus on regional airports in Korea.[40]

In March 2021, KAL announced the merger with Asiana Airlines will be delayed as foreign authorities have not approved the deal.[41][42] As of 2023, the deal has not been completed as essential countries have approached the deal with skepticism.[43]

On 12 December 2024, Reuters reported that Korean Air has announced the completion of the purchase of debt-laden Asiana Airlines in a deal worth 1.5 trillion won (US$1.6billion). The deal enables Korean Air to acquire 63.88% in the second largest airline in the country, becoming the 12th largest airline in the world by international capacity.[44]

Corporate affairs and identity

One of the airline's offices, the KAL building in Seoul

Ownership

Korean Air is owned by Hanjin Group and it is majority controlled by Hanjin KAL Corporation. The owner family of Hanjin Group is still the airline's largest and controlling, shareholder; Walter Cho, its current chairman and CEO, is the third generation of the family to lead the airline. As of 5 June 2020, Hanjin KAL holds 29.27% of Korean Air shares.[6]

Hubs and headquarters

Incheon International Airport Terminal 2 is Korean Air's international hubs.[citation needed]

Korean Air's headquarters (대한항공 빌딩/大韓航空 빌딩) is located in Gonghang-dong, Gangseo District, Seoul.[45] The company also maintains a satellite headquarters campus at Incheon.[citation needed] Korean Air also has offices at Gimpo International Airport in Seoul.

Korean Air's other hubs are at Jeju International Airport, Jeju and Gimhae International Airport, Busan.[15] The maintenance facilities are located in Gimhae International Airport. The majority of Korean Air's pilots, ground staff, and flight attendants are based in Seoul and Busan.[citation needed]

Chaebol and nepotism

Korean Air has been cited as one of the examples of the South Korean "chaebol" system, wherein corporate conglomerates, established with government support, overreach diverse branches of industry. For much of the time between the foundation of Korean Air as Korean National Airlines in 1946 and the foundation of Asiana Airlines in 1988, Korean Air was the only airline operating in South Korea.

The process of the sale of Korean National Airlines to Hanjin in 1969 was supported by Park Chung Hee, the South Korean military general president who seized power of the country through a military coup d'état; and the monopoly of the airline was secured for two decades.

After widening the chaebol branches, the subsidiary corporations of Korean Air include marine and overland transportation businesses, hotels, and real estate among others; and the previous branches included heavy industry, passenger transportation, construction, and a stockbroking business. The nature of the South Korean chaebol system involves nepotism. A series of incidents involving Korean Air in the 2000s have "revealed an ugly side of the culture within chaebols, South Korea's giant family-run conglomerates".[46]

Hotel ownership

Korean Air owns four hotels: two KAL hotels on Jeju island, the Hyatt in Incheon, and a hotel/office building called the Wilshire Grand Tower in Los Angeles. This building in downtown Los Angeles houses the largest InterContinental Hotel in the Americas in what is the tallest building in Los Angeles.[47]

Korean Air Aerospace Division

Korean Air is also involved in aerospace research and manufacturing. The division, known as the Korean Air Aerospace Division (KAL-ASD), has manufactured licensed versions of the MD Helicopters MD 500 and Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, as well as the Northrop F-5E/F Tiger II fighter aircraft,[48] the aft fuselage and wings for the KF-16 fighter aircraft manufactured by Korean Aerospace Industries and parts for various commercial aircraft including the Boeing 737, Boeing 747, Boeing 777 and Boeing 787 Dreamliner; and the Airbus A330 and Airbus A380.[49] In 1991, the division designed and flew the Korean Air Chang-Gong 91 light aircraft. KAA also provides aircraft maintenance support for the United States Department of Defense in Asia and maintains a research division with focuses on launch vehicles, satellites, commercial aircraft, military aircraft, helicopters, and simulation systems.[50]

In October 2012, a development deal between Bombardier Aerospace and a government-led South Korean consortium was announced, aiming to develop a 90-seat turboprop regional airliner, targeting a 2019 launch date. The consortium would have included Korea Aerospace Industries and Korean Air.[51] While this plan did not come to fruition, in 2019, Korean Aerospace Industries nevertheless decided to conduct a two-year study to assess the feasibility of taking the lead on building a turboprop airliner.[52]

Destinations

Main article: List of Korean Air destinations

Codeshare agreements

Korean Air has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:[53][54]

Interline agreements

Korean Air has interline agreements with the following airlines:

Korean Air is also an airline partner of Skywards, the frequent-flyer program for Emirates. Skywards members can earn miles for flying Korean Air and can redeem miles for free flights.

Fleet

Current fleet

As of December 2024, Korean Air operates the following aircraft:[66][67][68]

Korean Air fleet
Aircraft In service Orders Passengers Notes
F P E Total
Airbus A220-300 10 — — — 140 140 Order with 10 options and 10 purchase rights.[69]
Airbus A321neo 14 36 — 8 174 182 Order with 26 options.[70][71][72]
Airbus A330-300 20 — — 24 248 272
24 252 276
260 284
Airbus A350-900 — 6 TBA [73]
Airbus A350-1000 — 27 TBA [73]
Airbus A380-800 7 — 12 94 301 407 To be retired by 2026.[74]
Boeing 737-800 2 — — 12 126 138
Boeing 737-900 9 — — 8 180 188
Boeing 737-900ER 6 — — 8 165 173
Boeing 737 MAX 8 5 25 — 8 138 146 Order with 20 options.[75][76]
150 158
Boeing 747-8I 7 — 6 48 314 368 Includes HL7644, the last passenger 747 ever built.[77]
5 to be sold to Sierra Nevada Corporation in 2025 for SAOC.[78][79][80]
1 VIP Leased to Republic of Korea Air Force for VIP transport.
Boeing 777-200ER 7 — 8 28 225 261
Boeing 777-300 4 — — 41 297 338
Boeing 777-300ER 25 — 8 42 227 277 All to be retrofitted with new Business Class.[81]
8 56 291
Boeing 777-9 — 20 TBA Deliveries from 2028.[82]
Boeing 787-9 14 6[83][84] — 24 245 269 Order with 10 options.[85]
Order was converted from Boeing 787-8.[86][87]
254 278
Boeing 787-10 5 35[83] — 36 289 325 Order with 10 options.[82]
Korean Air Cargo fleet
Boeing 747-400ERF 4 — Cargo
Boeing 747-8F 7 — Cargo
Boeing 777F 12 — Cargo
Korean Air Business Jet fleet[88][89]
AgustaWestland AW139 4 — 8–14
Boeing 737-700/BBJ1 1 — 16–26
Boeing 787-8/BBJ 1 — 39 [90][91]
Bombardier Global Express XRS 1 — 13
Gulfstream G650ER 1 — 13 [92]
Sikorsky S-76C+ 1 — 5–6
Total 168 155

Fleet development

At the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines Assembly in 2018, Korean Air announced that it was considering a new large widebody aircraft order to replace older Airbus A330, Boeing 747-400, Boeing 777-200ER and Boeing 777-300. Types under consideration for replacement of older widebody aircraft in the fleet include the Boeing 777X and Airbus A350 XWB.[93] At the International Air Transport Association Annual General Meeting (IATA AGM) in Seoul, Chairman Walter Cho said Korean Air's widebody order is imminent and it is considering an extra order of Airbus A220 Family including developing version, Airbus A220-500.[94]

In 2022, Korean Air was considering ordering a new freighter to continue the support cargo demand worldwide. Chairman of Korean Air Walter Cho said KAL is considering two options.[95][96]

Retired fleet

Korean Air has operated the following aircraft:[97][98][99][100]

Korean Air retired fleet
Aircraft Total Introduced Retired Replacement Notes
Airbus A300B4-2C 8 1975 1997 Airbus A330
Airbus A300B4-200F 2 1986 2000 None
Airbus A300-600R 27 1987 2012 Airbus A330
2 Converted into freighters and transferred to Korean Air Cargo
1 1994 None Crashed as flight KE2033
Airbus A330-200 3 1997 2024 Boeing 787 Dreamliner
5 Leased to T'way Air[101]
Airbus A330-300 1 1998 2022 None Written off as flight KE631
Airbus A380-800 2 2011 2024 Boeing 777-9
Boeing 707-320B 4 1971 1989 Boeing 747-200B
1 1978 None Shot down as flight KE902
Boeing 707-320C 7 1971 1989 Boeing 747-200B
1 1987 None Destroyed as flight KE858
Boeing 720 2 1969 1976 Boeing 747-200B
Boeing 727-100 5 1972 1985 McDonnell Douglas MD-80
Boeing 727-200 12 1980 1996 McDonnell Douglas MD-80
Boeing 737-700/BBJ1 1 2008 2018 None
Boeing 737-800 3 2007 2021 Airbus A220-300
Airbus A321neo
22 2000 2022 Transferred to subsidiary Jin Air.
Boeing 737-900 4 2001 2023 Airbus A321neo
3 Transferred to subsidiary Jin Air.
Boeing 747-200B 9 1973 1998 Boeing 747-400
2 Converted into freighters and transferred to Korean Air Cargo
1 1983 None Shot down as flight KE007
1 1980 Destroyed as flight KE015
Boeing 747-200C 2 1973 2000 None
Boeing 747-200F 7 1978 2006 Boeing 747-400F
1 1999 None Crashed as flight KE8509
Boeing 747-200SF 2 1991 2002 Boeing 747-400F
Boeing 747-300 1 1984 2006 Boeing 747-400
1 1997 None Crashed as flight KE801
Boeing 747-300M 1 1988 2001 Boeing 747-400M Converted into freighters and transferred to Korean Air Cargo
Boeing 747-300SF 1 2001 2006 Boeing 747-400F
Boeing 747-400 17 1989 2020 Boeing 747-8I
Boeing 777-300ER
8 2007 Converted into freighters and transferred to Korean Air Cargo
1 1998 None Crashed as flight KE8702
1 2001 2010 Leased to Republic of Korea Air Force for VIP transport until 2021[102]
Boeing 747-400BCF 8 2007 2014 Boeing 777F
Boeing 747-400ERF 4 2003 2017 Boeing 777F
Boeing 747-400F 10 1996 2018 Boeing 777F
Boeing 747-400M 1 1990 2010 Boeing 777-300ER
Boeing 747-8I 2 2017 2024 Boeing 777-9 Sold to Sierra Nevada Corporation for SAOC[80]
Boeing 747SP 2 1981 1998 Boeing 777-200ER
Boeing 777-200ER 7 1997 2024 Boeing 787 Dreamliner
4 2005 2016 Transferred to subsidiary Jin Air.
Boeing 777-300ER 1 2009 2021 None
Bombardier Global Express XRS 2 2011 2017 None
CASA C-212 1 1980 2000 None
Douglas DC-3 2 1950 1970 Un­known
Douglas DC-4 2 1953 1969 Un­known
Douglas DC-8-60 6 1972 1976 Boeing 707
Eurocopter EC135-P2+ 5 2011 2018 None
Eurocopter EC155-B1 2 2004 2018 None
Fairchild-Hiller FH-227 2 1967 1970 NAMC YS-11A-200
Fokker F27-200 3 1963 1980 Fokker F27-500
Fokker F27-500 3 1969 1991 Fokker F28-4000
Fokker F27-600 1 1982 1986 Fokker F28-4000
Fokker F28-4000 3 1984 1993 Fokker 100
1 1989 None Crashed as flight KE175
Fokker 100 12 1992 2004 Boeing 737-800
Gulfstream IV 1 1994 2012 Boeing BBJ1
Lockheed L-749A Constellation Un­known Un­known Un­known None
Lockheed L-1049H Super Constellation 3 1966 1967 None
McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32 2 1967 1972 Boeing 727
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 4 1975 1996 McDonnell Douglas MD-11
1 1989 None Crashed as flight KE803
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30CF 1 1978 1983 None Crashed as flight KE084
McDonnell Douglas MD-11 5 1991 1995 Airbus A330
Boeing 777 		Converted into freighters and transferred to Korean Air Cargo
McDonnell Douglas MD-11F 4 1995 2005 Boeing 747-400BCF
1 1999 None Crashed as flight KE6316
McDonnell Douglas MD-82 9 1993 2001 Boeing 737 Next Generation
McDonnell Douglas MD-83 7 1994 2001 Boeing 737 Next Generation
1 1999 None Crashed as flight KE1533
NAMC YS-11A-200 6 1968 1976 Boeing 727
1 1969 None Hijacked and captured by North Korea

Cabins

Korean Air Airbus A380-800 economy class
Korean Air Airbus A380-800 business class

Korean Air currently offers three types of first class, four types of business (Prestige) class, and standard economy class.[103] Korean Air operates First Class on all Boeing 747-8I and parts of its 777-300ER, Airbus A380-800, Boeing 777-200ER, and -300ER fleets. Some seats are equipped as suites with doors.[citation needed] The airline markets Business Class as "Prestige Class", with some aircraft equipped with suites.[citation needed] The airline announced its introduction of Premium Economy in 2017.[104] The first aircraft equipped with premium economy marketed as "Economy Plus" was CS300 (Airbus A220-300).[105] The product was eliminated in 2019 due to discordance of service and profit loss.[106][107] The airline also offers Economy Class.

Incidents and accidents

Main article: Korean Air incidents and accidents

In the late 1990s, Korean Air was "an industry pariah, notorious for fatal crashes" due to its extremely poor safety record and being one of the world's most dangerous airlines.[19][20][108] Safety has seemingly improved since as the airline made concerted efforts to improve standards in the early 21st century.[18] In 2001, the Federal Aviation Administration upgraded Korea's air-safety rating while Korean Air passed an International Air Transport Association audit in 2005.[108]

Between 1970 and 1999, many fatal incidents occurred. Since 1970, 17 Korean Air aircraft have been written off in serious incidents and accidents with the loss of 700 lives. Two Korean Air aircraft were shot down by the Soviet Union, one operating as Korean Air Lines Flight 902 and the other as Korean Air Lines Flight 007.

Korean Air's deadliest incident was Flight 007 which was shot down by the Soviet Union on September 1, 1983. All 269 people on board were killed, including a sitting U.S. Congressman, Larry McDonald.

The last fatal passenger accident was the Korean Air Flight 801 crash in 1997, which killed 229 people of the 254 people aboard including Shin Ki-ha, a South Korean parliamentarian.[109][110][111] The National Transportation Safety Board concluded that poor communication between the flight crew as the probable cause for the air crash, along with the captain's poor decision-making on the non-precision approach.[112][113][114][115]

The last crew fatalities were in the crash of Korean Air Cargo Flight 8509 in 1999 due to instrument malfunction and pilot error.[116][117]

The last aircraft write-off occurred in 2022, when Korean Air Flight 631 overran the runway at Cebu, Philippines while attempting to land under poor weather conditions.[118]

In a 2023 "landmark decision", the state-affiliated Korea Worker's Compensation and Welfare Service ruled that the cancer death of a flight attendant was akin to an industrial accident. The plaintiff had flown for 25 years on routes to Europe and America, which exposed workers to more cosmic radiation because Earth's magnetic field is weaker over the North Pole. Korean Air said it monitors and limits individual radiation exposure to less than 6mSv a year. The plaintiff's attorney contends that the company uses an old measuring method. The ruling panel said that the method employed by Korean Air could have downplayed the extent of radiation exposure and that the flight attendant could have been exposed to over 100mSv of radiation.[119]

See also

References

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  6. ^ a b 대한항공(A003490), 지분분석, 기업정보, Company Guide (in Korean). Archived from the original on February 14, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
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