Korea Skies Get Crowded as Travel Mania Spurs 6 Budget Carriers
- Asiana Airlines unit Air Seoul to get flying permit Wednesday
- Competition intensifies as China offers more opportunities
A Korean Air Lines Co. employee looks out as the company's Boeing Co. 747-8 passenger aircraft arrives on the tarmac during a media preview at Incheon International Airport in Incheon, South Korea, on Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2015. Korean Air plans to operate the aircraft from Seoul on the Frankfurt and Singapore routes. The airline also plans to introduce the aircraft on the San Francisco and Hong Kong routes from November.
Photographer: SeongJoon Cho/BloombergSouth Korea may be small with about a 30th of China’s population. Yet, its skies are about to get more crowded with a sixth budget airline, beating its giant neighbor that boasts two major no-frills carriers.
Asiana Airlines Inc.’s fully owned new low-cost unit, Air Seoul Co., is poised to receive a government permit on Wednesday as it takes over some of the short-haul flights that are less profitable for its parent. The carrier will start flying July 11 between Gimpo and Jeju, the world’s busiest domestic route, for about three months before venturing overseas.