Due to COVID-19 Spread... Air Seoul Cancels International Tourist Flight After Two Days

All December Flight Plans Canceled

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Je-hoon] As the third wave of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) becomes a reality, domestic airlines that enthusiastically launched international sightseeing flight products are facing difficulties.

According to the industry on the 11th, Air Seoul decided to cancel all international sightseeing flights scheduled for the 19th and 26th. It has only been two days since the related products went on sale. An Air Seoul official explained, "As COVID-19 began to spread again, we decided to cancel sightseeing flights in December first," adding, "January flights will be decided depending on the situation."

The domestic aviation industry has been requesting permission from authorities for international sightseeing flights as international flights have been restricted due to COVID-19. Since duty-free purchases within $600 are possible during international flights, they judged that they could attract related demand.

However, as COVID-19 spreads again, airlines seem to be in a dilemma once more. An industry official said, "During the first domestic sightseeing flight, it was so popular that it was sold out, but the recently launched products, despite the advantage of allowing duty-free purchases, have reservation rates cut in half."

So far, four airlines?Asiana Airlines, Jeju Air, Air Busan, and Air Seoul?have launched and started selling international sightseeing flight products. Among them, Asiana Airlines and Jeju Air, which were scheduled to operate the first international sightseeing flight on the 12th, plan to continue operations as planned.

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