Upgrade Alert: Korean Air Switches to Bigger Planes on Seoul Flights & Launches Taipei–Busan Route in January

▲Korean Air’s new Airbus A330 for Taipei–Seoul flights (Photo via Wikimedia Commons)

By Yan Yuncen, Taipei

With MERS fears fading, Korean tourists are returning in full force. To accommodate the growing influx of travelers,Korean Air plans to "upgrade" its Taipei–Seoul aircraft from Boeing 737 to Airbus A330 starting October 25, increasing seating capacity by 138 per flight.Additionally, as tourism in Korea’s Yeongnam region continues to thrive, Korean Air will launch a new Taipei–Busan route in 2016, offering Taiwanese travelers more options.

Founded in 1969, Korean Air operates an extensive network spanning 44 countries and 127 cities worldwide. In 2014, it carried over 25.5 million passengers—an increase of 7% year-on-year—with a 20% rise in Korean visitors to Taiwan and a 15% surge in Taiwanese travelers to Korea. However, all that changed following the MERS outbreak in May this year.

"Passenger traffic between Taiwan and Korea dropped by 40% in July and August compared to the same period last year. Although there was a slight rebound in September, numbers remain 20% lower than last year," said Huang Shengyuan, Deputy General Manager of Korean Air’s China Regional Sales Department. He noted that since the MERS crisis, travel from Chinese-speaking regions—particularly Taiwan, China, Japan, and Hong Kong—to Korea has significantly declined, while tourist numbers from Europe and the Americas have remained unaffected.

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