Tag: airlines

Korean Boycott Drops Air Travel to Japan By 2%

| August 1, 2019

A 2% drop in air travel to Japan is really not that impressive, but airlines are getting themselves prepared in case it gets worse:

Korean airlines are suspending flights and reducing the size of planes on Japanese routes as demand for seats plummets in the wake of a diplomatic-trade dispute between the neighbors.

Asiana Airlines said Tuesday that it will use smaller airplanes on flights to three major Japanese cities – Osaka, Okinawa and Fukuoka – due to the growing boycott in Korea of things Japanese. 

While Airbus 330 planes were used on those routes, the smaller Airbus 321 or Boeing 767s will be used starting mid-September, the company said. 

“While A330 planes can carry some 290 passengers, A321 planes offer 174 seats,” a spokesperson for Asiana said. “Reservations for flights to Japan have fallen by roughly 2 percent year on year at this point, but we decided to change airplane models in case the [diplomatic-trade row] lasts longer.”

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

Picture of the Day: North Korean Flight Attendants Model for Magazine Cover

| September 11, 2015

On July 31, Yonhap News came into possession of the North Korean monthly pictorial publication “Joseon” September edition, featuring five female flight attendant models on the cover.

The flight attendants are walking with their luggage, attired in navy blue uniforms, a change from the red uniforms worn in 2013, and wearing a badge on the left side of the chest featuring Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il. An aircraft from Koryo Air can be seen in the background.

With their beautiful smiles, and wearing short skirts, black shoes, sophisticated makeup, necklaces, and other accessories, the flight attendants do not look any different from attendants of other airlines.

The change in the eye-catching and elegant appearance of the flight attendants is an effort by Kim Jong-un’s regime to stimulate tourism by improving the quality of airline service.  [Korea Bang]

You can read the rest at the link.