LCCs Also 'Stirring' to Resume International Flights... Air Busan to Restart Hong Kong and Macao Routes in July

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Je-hoon] Following major airlines such as Korean Air and Asiana Airlines, low-cost carriers (LCCs) are also gradually joining the ranks of resuming international flights. This comes as the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has slowed down in major countries. However, since each country has not yet eased the strengthened entry controls and the possibility of a second wave of COVID-19 remains, the prevailing assessment is that whether these plans can materialize is still uncertain.

Air Busan announced on the 21st that it plans to sequentially resume international flights, starting with the resumption of the Busan~Hong Kong and Macau routes on July 1. This comes four months after suspending international flights following the Busan~Tokyo (Narita) flight in early March when COVID-19 was rampant.

Until now, all airlines in the LCC industry except Jeju Air have completely suspended international flights. However, as the spread of COVID-19 has slowed, each airline is reportedly reviewing various scenarios internally regarding the timing of resuming international flights. Currently, aside from Air Busan, its "sibling" Air Seoul has opened reservations for some international routes.

Earlier, major airlines had already announced plans to resume some international flights in June. Korean Air plans to resume operations on 19 routes starting next month, and Asiana Airlines plans to resume 13 routes. Both companies explained that they are proactively restarting routes as COVID-19 enters a stabilization phase.

However, whether these plans can be realized immediately remains uncertain. Both Korean Air and Asiana Airlines, which plan to resume operations on about 7 to 10 routes to China, are not currently accepting reservations for flights to China. This is because Chinese authorities have not yet lifted the "one airline, one route" regulation to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Currently, both airlines maintain only the Incheon~Shenyang and Incheon~Changchun routes under this regulation.

Considering that the resumption date is not yet fixed, Air Busan, which plans to resume international flights, has decided not to charge change fees (once) or refund fees for domestic and international special fare tickets. An LCC industry official said, "The COVID-19 situation is still ongoing, and it is difficult to predict whether each country will ease entry controls soon," adding, "Each airline is reportedly reviewing various scenarios internally."