Korean Air undecided over Zagreb route revival

Korean Air is yet to decide on whether it will resume operations between Seoul and Zagreb next year, more than four years after nonstop flights were last maintained between the two capitals. The Korean airline has told EX-YU Aviation News that it is in the process of finalising its 2024 summer timetable with a decision on future flights to Croatia yet be made. It noted that geopolitical circumstances must also be taken into account, with South Korean carriers unable to fly into Russian airspace, which significantly increases operating costs on services to and from Europe. A proposed merger between Korean Air and Asiana Airlines will also impact on its European network, with the Korean flag carrier resubmitting a proposal to the European Commission earlier this month to concede a number of slots across the continent to T’Way Air to satisfy competition concerns. T’Way Air itself has put plans to launch flights to Zagreb on hold.

Korean Air has rebuilt its European network in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic and has added a new service to nearby Budapest. This winter season, the airline is maintaining three weekly flights to the Hungarian capital with the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft. Recently, in late September and early October, during the Chuseok holiday period in Korea, Korean Air operated three charter flights to Zagreb on behalf of local tour operators with the 218-seat Airbus A330-200 aircraft, as demand for travel from Korea to Croatia begins to rebound.

Korean Air launched year-round nonstop operations between Seoul and Zagreb in September 2018. Services were maintained with a triangle routing - Seoul - Zagreb - Zurich - Seoul - during the winter of 2018/19, while the flights were downgraded to seasonal in 2019. In its last year of operations to Zagreb in 2019, it handled 39.763 passengers on flights to and from the Croatian capital, according to the European Union’s Statistical Office. The carrier’s average cabin load factor on the route for the entire year stood at 70.5%, however, average loads peaked at 89.5% in the month of May of that year. Since the airline initially maintained year-round flights between the two cities, loads were notably light during the first quarter of 2019. Since the service was operated with a triangle routing, the majority of seats were taken up by passengers flying between Seoul and Zurich. The airline operated a total of 241 flights on the Zagreb route in 2019 (both directions included). It utilised the 218-seat A330-200 aircraft on 69% of its Zagreb flights and the 269-seat Boeing 787-9 on the remaining services.