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Korean carriers expand routes to China as demand returns to pre-pandemic levels
2024-03-23
Demand for flights between China and Korea is on the rise, prompting Korean airlines to expand their flight schedules.
A total of 1.02 million passengers flew Chinese routes in February, marking the first time in four years that monthly numbers have exceeded one million since January 2020, just before the announcement of Covid-19 social distancing measures, according to data from Air Portal run by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.
The figure represents an increase of 867.9 percent from February of last year, when only 105,224 passengers flew the same route. The recovery rate from February 2019, before the onset of Covid-19, stands at 74.8 percent.
The surge isn't limited to mainland China. Passenger traffic on the Taiwan route has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, while the Hong Kong route saw a 67.6 percent recovery rate over the same period.
As demand for travel to China gradually picks up, airlines are moving forward with plans to reintroduce and expand routes.
Korean Air announced the resumption of flights from Incheon to Zhangjiajie three times a week starting April 23, and four times a week from Incheon to Zhengzhou starting April 24. The resumption comes more than four years after those routes were halted due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Asiana Airlines is also ramping up operations on its key routes, including the reintroduction of daily flights between Gimpo International Airport and Beijing throughout July and August. It plans to resume five routes and increase capacity on eight others while offering incentives such as additional free checked baggage to promote its Chinese flights.
Korea's budget carriers, having achieved record-breaking performance last year after aggressively growing routes to Japan and Southeast Asia, are also expanding their services to China.
T'way Air is launching a new route from Incheon to Beijing's Daxing International Airport on March 25, and Eastar Jet will operate its first Chinese route from Incheon to Shanghai starting April 19.
Despite the historically lucrative nature of Chinese routes which traditionally accounting for 10 to 20 percent of Korean airlines' total revenue, recent geopolitical tensions and the fallout of Covid-19 have rendered them unprofitable in recent years. With the gradual recovery of Chinese tourist demand, however, airlines are cautiously resuming and expanding their Chinese routes.
“The recovery of Chinese tourist demand is gradual but continuously improving,” an industry official from a Korean low-cost carrier said.
“Besides catering to the primary tourist demand for some routes, Chinese flights also serve commercial needs like students studying abroad and business travelers,” he added. “With Southeast Asia and Japan routes already operational, the resurgence of Chinese routes is seen as the next step in the recovery process.”
The number of Chinese flights is expected to increase per the Korean government's recently unveiled plans to create more Open Skies Agreements, including one with China, by 2030. Open Skies agreements are a form of air transport liberalization permitting airlines to operate unrestrictedly between nations, without constraints on flight frequency or routes. Korea currently has agreements with 50 countries, including the United States, Japan, and some Southeast Asian nations. The government hopes to broaden that sum to 70 countries including China and Indonesia, as well as the European Union by 2030.
| 번호 | 기사목록 | 날짜 | 조회수 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60 |
 |
2024-04-27 | 3146 |
| 59 |
 |
2024-04-26 | 4310 |
| 58 |
 |
2024-04-25 | 4196 |
| 57 |
 |
2024-04-24 | 4401 |
| 56 |
 |
2024-04-23 | 4367 |
| 55 |
 |
2024-04-22 | 4266 |
| 54 |
 |
2024-04-21 | 4315 |
| 53 |
 |
2024-04-20 | 4217 |
