Air passenger number recovers to 84 percent of pre-Covid levels

Passengers flock the entrance hall of Incheon International Airport on Sunday. [YONHAP]

Passenger demand for Korea's flag carriers recovered to 84 percent of pre-pandemic levels in the first half, government data showed Sunday.

From January to June, the number of passengers on domestic and international routes amounted to 53.39 million, or 83.9 percent of the tally reported in the same period of 2019, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said in a press release.

The number of passengers on domestic routes stood at 32.7 million, or 61.4 percent of the total, up 1.2 percent from four years ago.

By carrier, the recovery was faster among low-cost airlines, such as Jin Air, Jeju Air, Air Busan, Air Seoul, Eastar Jet and T'way Air, than the country's two full-service carriers — Korean Air Lines and Asiana Airlines — as they operate more short routes to Japan and Southeast Asia, for which travel demand spiked.

In the first six months of the year, Korean Air had 12.28 million passengers, or 69.8 percent of the number recorded in the same period of 2019, while Asiana had 9 million passengers or 68 percent of the 2019 tally.

The number of passengers for T'way Air jumped 30 percent to 7.28 million, and Jin Air's passengers rose 14 percent from 2019.

Additionally, local air carriers' cargo shipments came to 1.4 million tons, 91.2 percent of the volume logged four years ago, of which Korean Air took up 54 percent.

BY SOHN DONG-JOO, YONHAP [sohn.dongjoo@joongang.co.kr]