Korean Air’s board has approved spending $2.3 billion to purchase Asiana Airlines. With the purchase of their Korean rival, they will be the dominant Korean carrier.
The airline will face antitrust issues, but these aren’t normal times. Regulators should be more willing to give the merger a pass as opposed to letting Asiana fail.
I’d assume that Korean will remain in the Skyteam Alliance, especially as they have grown closer to Delta in recent years. That’s a big loss for the Star Alliance, though nearby world class airlines like ANA and Singapore remain in the alliance.
I flew Korean first class from Singapore to NYC via Seoul 7 years ago with Chase points on the 777 and A380, though I have long wanted to try out the first class suites on Korean’s 747-8. Alas the Chase-Korean transfer option ended in 2018. You can still transfer Marriott points to Asiana or Korean at a 60K:25K ratio.
HT: chff
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2 Comments On "Skyteam’s Korean Air Will Buy Struggling Star Alliance Carrier Asiana Airlines"
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I flew Korean air First in Oct 2019 from Bkk to Seoul to JFK.. You’re not missing much, their first was a little embarrassing. It wasn’t memorable which is a shame. The food was ok at best, the amenities were horrible. The service was ok. There was plenty of space which was nice but I should have booked business and saved miles and cash. Long live A380!
So IMHO this is a lil shaddy, Why did KE need bailout money from the government if they have cash in hand? M&A after receiving a government bailout is wrong. If this happened in the states, the government wouldn’t allow it. Sad, if they can afford to buy Asiana why do they have such a bad first class?
Very curious about what’s gonna happen to both BofA Asians credit cards.