Korean Air

Callsign	KOREANAIR
Country	South Korea (Republic of Korea)
Website	https://www.koreanair.com
Wikipedia	https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_Air

Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd. (KAL; Korean: 주식회사 대한항공) 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. 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, 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. 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. 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. In November 2020, it was announced that Korean Air would merge with competitor Asiana Airlines, but was switched to only acquire a major stake after the original merger plan was blocked by the United States Department of Justice for monopoly concerns. The acquisition was completed on December 12, 2024. History[edit]A Korean National Airlines Douglas DC-4 at Oakland in 1953Founding[edit]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. 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. Expansion[edit]Korean Air Lines logo from 1969 to 1984.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. 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. In 1981, Korean Air opened its cargo terminal at Los Angeles International Airport. 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'[edit]Korean Air's logo from 1984 to March 10, 2025, still used on older aircraft.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. Checkered safety culture and record[edit]Korean Air was once notorious for its abysmal safety record and high rate of fatal crashes. 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.Between 1970 and 1999, Korean Air wrote off 16 aircraft due to serious incidents and accidents with the loss of over 700 lives. 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. 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. 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. The move was driven by the country's lax oversight of its carriers including Korean Air. 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. In 2002, the New York Times noted that Korean Air had been removed from many "shun lists". Korean Air Lines Boeing 747SP at EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg in 1985Korean Air takes delivery of its first Airbus A380 at Toulouse–Blagnac Airport, France on May 25, 2011.Early 21st century[edit]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.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. 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.In 2013, Korean Air acquired a 44% stake in Czech Airlines. It sold the stake in October 2017. On 1 May 2018, the airline launched a joint venture partnership with Delta Air Lines. In 2019, Korean Air began playing a safety video with the K-pop group SuperM. It featured the song "Let's go everywhere", which was to be released as a single. The airline also featured the group on a livery sported by a Boeing 777-300ER, with registration HL8010. In 2023, Korean Air was certified a 5-star Airline by Skytrax, an air transport rating organization. In 2025, a 10% shareholding was acquired in Canadaian airline WestJet. Nut rage incident[edit]Main article: Nut rage incidentCho 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. Merger with Asiana Airlines[edit]Main article: Merger of Korean Air and Asiana AirlinesIn November 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the South Korean Government officially announced that Korean Air will acquire Asiana Airlines. 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.In March 2021, KAL announced the merger with Asiana Airlines will be delayed as foreign authorities have not approved the deal. As of 2023, the deal has not been completed as essential countries have approached the deal with skepticism. On 12 December 2024, Reuters reported that Korean Air had announced the completion of the purchase of debt-laden Asiana Airlines in a deal worth 1.5 trillion won (USD 1.6 billion). The deal enables Korean Air to acquire 63.88% of the second-largest airline in the country, becoming the 12th largest airline in the world by international capacity. Korean Air Taegeuk symbol since 11 March 2025Rebranding[edit]On 11 March 2025, as part of its merger with Asiana Airlines, in which the latter brand will be fully absorbed in 2027, Korean Air unveiled its first major corporate rebrand since 1984. The rebranding was done in partnership with design agency Lippincott and saw the existing "Taegeuk" symbol lose its blue and red color palette in favor of outlined monochromatic dark blue color of the same symbol. It also replaced the wordmark "KOREAN AIR" written in a modified Cooper Black typeface with a sans-serif version named "Hanjin Group Sans" designed by Dalton Maag for the same wordmark (in the case of aircraft liveries, the wordmark is just "KOREAN"). Lippincott notes that reinterpreting the Taegeuk symbol and removing it from the logotype enhances its visibility, and its calligraphic brush-strokes style adds elegance to the new identity. Meanwhile, the new uniforms for Korean and Asiana employees signifying the unified "Korean Air" brand will be introduced in 2027. Corporate affairs and identity[edit]One of the airline's offices, the KAL building in SeoulOwnership[edit]Korean Air is owned by Hanjin Group and it is majority controlled by Hanjin KAL Corporation. Walter Cho, its current chairman and CEO, is the third generation of the family who controls Hanjin KAL to lead the airline. (Hanjin KAL's largest shareholder is Delta Air Lines, at 14.90% ownership.) As of 5 June 2020, Hanjin KAL holds 29.27% of Korean Air shares. Hubs and headquarters[edit]Incheon International Airport Terminal 2 is Korean Air's international hub.Korean Air's headquarters (대한항공 빌딩/大韓航空 빌딩) is located on the grounds of Gimpo International Airport in Gonghang-dong, Gangseo District, Seoul. The company also maintains a satellite headquarters campus at Incheon. Korean Air's other hubs are at Jeju International Airport, Jeju and Gimhae International Airport, Busan. 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. Chaebol and nepotism[edit]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-turned president who seized power of the country through a military coup d'état; and the monopoly of the airline was secured for two decades until his assassination in 1979. 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". Hotel ownership[edit]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. Korean Air Aerospace Division[edit]Korean Air Aerospace logoKorean 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, 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. 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.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. 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. Destinations[edit]Main article: List of Korean Air destinationsCodeshare agreements[edit]Korean Air has codeshare agreements with the following airlines: .mw-parser-output .div-col{margin-top:0.3em;column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .div-col-small{font-size:90%}.mw-parser-output .div-col-rules{column-rule:1px solid #aaa}.mw-parser-output .div-col dl,.mw-parser-output .div-col ol,.mw-parser-output .div-col ul{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .div-col li,.mw-parser-output .div-col dd{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}Aerolíneas ArgentinasAeroméxicoAir EuropaAir FranceAir Tahiti NuiAir New ZealandAlaska AirlinesAuroraChina AirlinesChina Eastern AirlinesChina Southern AirlinesDelta Air Lines (Joint Venture Partners)EmiratesEtihad AirwaysGaruda IndonesiaGol Linhas Aéreas InteligentesHainan AirlinesHawaiian AirlinesITA AirwaysJapan AirlinesJin Air (Subsidiary)Kenya AirwaysKLMLATAM BrasilLATAM ChileLATAM PerúMalaysia AirlinesMIAT Mongolian AirlinesMyanmar Airways InternationalRossiya AirlinesRoyal Brunei AirlinesSaudiaScandinavian AirlinesShanghai AirlinesSriLankan AirlinesTAROMUzbekistan AirwaysVietnam AirlinesVirgin AtlanticWestJetXiamenAir Interline agreements[edit]Korean Air has interline agreements with the following airlines: Air PremiaJetBlue 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[edit]Current fleet[edit]As of June 2025[update], Korean Air operates the following aircraft:

Korean Air Fleet

Aircraft	In service	Orders	Passengers				Notes
			F	J	Y	Total
Airbus A220-300	10	—	—	—	140	140	Order with 10 options and 10 purchase rights.
Airbus A321neo	16	40	—	8	174	182	Order with 20 options.
Airbus A330-300	18	—	—	24	248	272
				24	252	276
					260	284
Airbus A350-900	2	4	—	28	283	311	Deliveries started in January 2025.
Airbus A350-1000	—	27	TBA
Airbus A380-800	6	—	12	94	301	407	Originally planned to be retired in 2026.Currently postponed.
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	24	—	8	138	146	Order with 20 options.
					150	158
	1		VIP				Leased to Republic of Korea Air Force for VIP transport.
Boeing 747-8I	5	—	6	48	314	368	Includes HL7644, the last passenger 747 ever built.
	1		VIP				Leased to Republic of Korea Air Force for VIP transport.
Boeing 777-300	4	—	—	41	297	338
Boeing 777-300ER	25	—	8	42	227	277	All to be retrofitted with new Prestige Suites 2.0 and have Kosmo Suites removed.
			8	56		291
Boeing 777-9	—	20	TBA				Deliveries from 2028.
Boeing 787-9	14	6	—	24	245	269	Order with 10 options.Order was converted from Boeing 787-8.
					254	278
Boeing 787-10	10	30	—	36	289	325	Order with 10 options.
Korean Air Cargo fleet
Boeing 747-400ERF	4	—	Cargo
Boeing 747-8F	7	—	Cargo
Boeing 777F	12	—	Cargo
Korean Air Business Jet fleet
AgustaWestland AW139	4	—	8–14
Airbus Helicopters H160-B	1	—	6
Boeing 737-700/BBJ1	1	—	16–26
Boeing 787-8/BBJ	1	—	39
Bombardier Global Express XRS	1	—	13
Gulfstream G650ER	1	—	13
Sikorsky S-76C+	1	—	5–6
Total	167	151