Summary Korean Air leads flights between South Korea and the US, servicing major cities nationwide. Asiana Airlines will merge with Korean Air, further enhancing flights between Seoul and select US cities. Delta Air is the only US carrier among the top five, partnering with Korean Air for an extensive route network.
South Korea is emerging as a popular tourist destination; while the country's most popular visitors are from China and Japan , the United States is an increasingly growing market, and several carriers serve the US-South Korean market. While most international flights operate to and from Seoul's main transit hub, Incheon International Airport (ICN), a number are also available from Seoul–Gimpo International Airport (GMP). However, these are currently limited to other Asian destinations.
A growing market Unsurprisingly, the most popular routes to and from South Korea to the United States are predominantly to the West Coast destinations of Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle. However, a robust market also connects Seoul to the Hawaiian Islands, with Honolulu seeing all South Korea—Hawaii traffic. While Hawaiian Airlines serves the Honolulu to Seoul route, it doesn't serve the route enough to reach the top five.
With support from data from Cirium, an online aviation analytics company, Simple Flying decided to investigate the data to determine the most popular airlines serving this market; let's look at the top five. Data is based on services in both directions for the 2024 calendar year. 1 Korean Airlines 10,373 annual flights This Skyteam member is the leading carrier serving international routes between South Korea and the United States.
It serves most of the major US cities on both sides of the country. Apart from destinations in the contiguous United States, it also serves Hawaii and the overseas territory of Guam. Korean Air's US destinations from Incheon Airport include: Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) Boston (BOS) Chicago O'Hare (ORD) Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) Guam (GUM) Honolulu International Airport (HNL) Las Vegas (LAS) Los Angeles (LAX) New York John F.
Kennedy (JFK) San Francisco International Airport (SFO) Seattle/Tacoma (SEA) Washington Dulles (IAD) The airline's 10,373 annual flights to and from the US represent 3,299,119 available seats, which equates to 19,721,431,073 available seat miles (ASMs). The Seoul-based carrier is boosting flights across its route network over the coming months. 2 Asiana Airlines 4,582 annual flights Star Alliance member Asiana Airlines will fold into the Korean Air brand by the end of this year and is the second-largest airline transporting passengers between the United States and South Korea.
Asiana traces its history back to 1988 when it was launched as Seoul Airlines. It was a pioneer in being an environmentally friendly airline since the 90s when it was one of the first airlines to ban smoking and cigarette sales onboard in 1995. The airline eventually joined the Star Alliance in 2003.
Since 2020, following financial struggles, the Government of the Republic of Korea proposed the airlines merge with the government and acquire up to 30.77% through the Korea Development Bank. Asiana's 4,582 annual seats between South Korea and the United States represent 1,644,497 seats and 9,593,437,812 available seat miles.
Its network from Seoul Incheon is to these US gateways: Honolulu Los Angeles San Francisco Seattle/Tacoma Saipan (Charter) Four routes to Europe and its cargo unit are expected to be sold, paving the way for the European Unions antitrust approval. The figures noted in this article are based on all annual flights between South Korea and the United States. They will include charters or increased services subject to demand and may not mirror August flight schedules.
3 Delta Air Lines 3,429 annual flights Delta Air Lines is The only US carrier in the top five, even though both American and United serve Incheon from several of their select hubs. The airline benefits from an extensive joint venture agreement with Korean Air. The JV, launched in May 2018, facilitates over 2,000 passengers a day through Incheon, with both airlines benefiting from each other's extensive networks from their respective hubs, reaching 290 destinations in America and 80 in Asia.
The two airlines serve more direct routes between the US and South Korea than any other airline partnership. Delta serves Incheon from the below airports: Atlanta Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport Minneapolis/St. Paul Seattle/Tacoma Delta has established numerous joint ventures across the Atlantic and Pacific, including partnerships with airlines such as Virgin Atlantic in the UK.
4 Jeju Air 2,841 annual flights Jeju Air is the first and largest low-cost airline in South Korea and is a founding member of the Value Alliance. While the carrier doesn't serve the mainland US or Hawaii, it does connect South Korea to Guam and has a fleet of all Boeing 737-800 and MAX 8 family aircraft. In addition to investments in aviation, the airline's parent company, Aekyung Group, also owns the Holiday Inn Express in Seoul.
Jeju connects to the US from two South Korean airports, Seoul Incheon and Busan, to Saipan and Guam (select routes seasonally). The airline maintains a double daily service to Guam Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport (GUM) from Incheon in August, adding to a total annual flight tally of 2,841 flights; this equates to 536,949 seats and 1,050,787,269 available seat miles.
If you're interested in jumping onboard a Jeju Air flight to Guam, its current schedule for August is below: Flight number From To Departure time Arrival time 7C 3102 Seoul Incheon Guam 10:40 16:05 7C 3101 Gum Seoul Incheon 17:10 21:15 7C 3106 Seoul Incheon Guam 20:20 02:00 + 1 day 7C 3105 Guam Seoul Incheon 03:05 06:55 While the popularity of large alliances is evident from their extensive networks, the lesser-known alliances are Vanilla, U-FLY, and Value alliances. Flight schedules noted in this article are courtesy of Flightradar24 5 Jin Air 1,506 annual flights The second largest South Korean low-cost airline is Jin Air . It connects Seoul Incheon and Busan with Guam once daily in August, contributing to 1,506 annual flights to the United States .
It serves the route with the Boeing 737-800 and represents 284,634 yearly seats. This is 543,955,986 available seat miles (ASM's). It's scheduled for Guam this month is included below: Flight number From To Departure time Arrival time LJ 913 Seoul Incheon Guam 09:40 15:05 LJ 914 Guam Seoul Incheon 16:15 19:55 The slice of the US in the Northern Pacific.
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