Incheon International Airport Corporation announced on the 4th that the Incheon-Hawaii route operated by Asiana Airlines resumed on the 3rd.
Short-distance routes such as Incheon-Manila (March 30), Incheon-Hanoi (March 29), and Incheon-Ho Chi Minh (April 1) have been resumed following the government’s quarantine exemption was implemented, but this is the first time for a medium-long-haul route. .
On the followingnoon of the 3rd, Incheon International Airport Corporation and Asiana Airlines jointly held a commemorative event at the 10th boarding gate of Incheon International Airport Terminal 1.
The event was attended by officials such as Incheon International Airport Corporation’s Future Business Headquarters Director Kim Beom-ho and Asiana Airlines Passenger Headquarters Oh Kyung-soo and delivered souvenirs such as travel pouches and quarantine kits to all passengers on the Hawaii flight.
Hawaii is a popular vacation destination for newlyweds, and as of 2019, regarding 590,000 passengers (490,000 direct flights and 100,000 transfers) used the Hawaii route at Incheon International Airport alone.
Incheon International Airport Corporation expects that the resumption of mid- and long-distance routes will serve as a signal to revitalize overseas travel in earnest. In addition, it is expected that preemptive measures to restore the airline network will help a lot in the competition to attract transit passengers with overseas airports such as China and Japan in the post-coronavirus era.
Incheon International Airport Corporation President Kim Kyung-wook said, “As air demand is expected to recover in earnest following the government’s implementation of the self-quarantine exemption for overseas entrants, we will prepare for a recovery in air demand through close cooperation with the airline and travel industry and related organizations.”