Korean Air Partners with Incheon Airport Corporation and KAARI for UAM Development

(From left) Sangryul Lee, President of Korea Aerospace Research Institute, Woo Ki-hong, President of Korean Air, and Kyungwook Kim, President of Incheon International Airport Corporation, are taking a commemorative photo after signing the 'R&D Cooperation Agreement (MOU) for UAM Commercialization' at Korean Air headquarters in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 5th.

[Asia Economy Reporter Dongwoo Lee] Korean Air announced on the 5th that it has signed a research and development business agreement with Incheon International Airport Corporation and Korea Aerospace Research Institute to establish an Urban Air Mobility (UAM) traffic management system.

Under this agreement, the three organizations plan to promote tasks such as joint research and development cooperation for fostering the UAM industry and industrial concretization through mutual exchange to build a UAM flight control and traffic management system.

Korean Air plans to maximize effectiveness by fully leveraging the technical capabilities possessed by each organization based on this agreement.

The company aims to create synergy and develop the domestic UAM industry by combining its experience and technological expertise in passenger and cargo transportation and manned/unmanned aircraft development with Incheon International Airport Corporation’s technology in navigation safety facilities and airport construction and operation, as well as Korea Aerospace Research Institute’s research capabilities in future air traffic management.

UAM is attracting attention as a next-generation mobility means that utilizes urban air routes to solve traffic congestion and environmental issues. The global UAM market size is expected to reach approximately $1.5 trillion by 2040. As a proactive effort to commercialize domestic UAM by 2025, the government formed UAM Team Korea in June last year to lead public-private cooperation and systematically promote the early stabilization of Korea-style urban air mobility.

Korean Air plans to actively expand technical cooperation with government agencies and research institutes to create a domestic UAM ecosystem, while also focusing on infrastructure development for pioneering urban air routes and establishing flight control systems.

Meanwhile, the signing ceremony held at Korean Air headquarters in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, was attended by Woo Ki-hong, President of Korean Air; Kim Kyung-wook, President of Incheon International Airport Corporation; and Lee Sang-ryul, President of Korea Aerospace Research Institute.