Quietly Successful Sightseeing Flights... Industry Calls for "Allowing Duty-Free Sales"

Asiana Launches 3rd Time Leap Product

Passengers aboard Asiana Airlines' 'A380 Korean Peninsula Circumnavigation Flight,' departing from Incheon Airport on the 24th, are looking at the outside scenery. Photo by Airport Photographers Group

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Je-hoon] National airlines' "destinationless flights (sightseeing flights)" launched during the COVID-19 pandemic are quietly gaining popularity. Inside and outside the aviation industry, there are voices calling for the allowance of duty-free shopping on international sightseeing flights to ensure profitability of such sightseeing flight products.

According to the industry on the 9th, Asiana Airlines is selling sightseeing flight products operating every Saturday (14th, 21st, 28th) until the 26th. This is the third time Asiana Airlines has offered this product following the first round (October 24-25) and the second round (October 31-November 1).

The reason Asiana Airlines launched the third product sale is that the sightseeing flights arranged as events continue to be successful. Both the first and second sightseeing flight products sold out upper-class seats such as business class, and the load factor reached around 80-90%. The third sightseeing flight product currently on sale is also reported to have nearly sold out upper-class seats.

The sightseeing flight product is expanding across national airlines. Jin Air has launched a sightseeing flight product with a Hong Kong travel concept, and Korean Air conducted a one-day flight for students of Inha Technical College last weekend.

For airlines, besides securing revenue through fares, sightseeing flights are also beneficial for pilots to maintain their licenses through flight hours. An industry official said, "Sightseeing flight products generally have higher fare levels compared to regular domestic routes," adding, "They are more profitable than domestic flights operating during less preferred time slots."

The industry is closely watching plans to expand sightseeing flights to international routes in the future. International sightseeing flights can enhance profitability through in-flight duty-free sales compared to domestic flights. However, customs authorities and other government agencies are still cautious about allowing duty-free sales on international sightseeing flights. Quarantine authorities are also reportedly concerned that contact between general international passengers and sightseeing flight passengers may occur during duty-free shop usage.

Because of this, some airlines initially planned to launch international sightseeing flight products this month but postponed them. An industry insider pointed out, "Unless the issue of duty-free sales is resolved, there is no strong incentive for airlines or customers to choose international sightseeing flights."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.