Gimpo-Haneda flights resume on June 29

Airplanes at Gimpo International Airport. [YONHAP]

Flights are resuming between Seoul's Gimpo and Tokyo’s Haneda airports.

According to Korea's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday, the Japanese government has agreed to reopen flights between the airports.

Flights will resume on June 29 starting with eight flights a week.

Korean Air and Asiana will operate flights on Wednesday and Saturday. Japan Airlines on Thursday and Sunday and All Nippon Airways (ANA) on Monday and Friday.

The number of flights will gradually increase.

Starting this month, the Korean government lifted a ban on short-term visit visas for tourists that began in April 2020 as the Covid-19 pandemic swept the globe.

While both capital cities have larger international airports – Incheon and Narita -- the Gimpo-Haneda route has always been popular because the airports are closer to the city centers.

Before the pandemic, 84 flights were scheduled between Gimpo and Haneda weekly, and in the peak season, 98 percent of their seats were occupied.

“The flight route between Gimpo and Haneda is symbolic of exchanges between the two countries,” said Transport Minister Won Hee-ryong. “We hope the reconnection will play a key role in revitalizing exchanges between the two countries.”

BY LEE HO-JEONG [lee.hojeong@joongang.co.kr]