Mileage Reform Postponement?... Korean Air "Reviewing Overall Improvement Measures"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunseok Yoo] Korean Air has effectively postponed the mileage reform plan that was scheduled to be implemented in April.

On the 20th, Korean Air stated, "We are carefully reviewing comprehensive improvement measures," and added, "We are gathering various opinions regarding the mileage reform plan."

Previously, Korean Air planned to restructure the mileage system by changing the mileage deduction criteria from regions to flight distance. However, the mileage system reform faced criticism from consumers and the government. While the mileage deduction rate for short-haul routes would decrease, the deduction rate for long-haul routes such as those to the United States and Europe would increase, leading to accusations of a unilateral reduction in mileage benefits.

Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Won Hee-ryong also criticized on the 15th, saying, "Despite record-breaking performance, it seems customers are being neglected."

In response, Korean Air reported the mileage reform plan to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. They decided to operate more than 100 special flights available for mileage reservations once or twice a week on popular routes such as New York, LA, and Paris from June to October. Additionally, they planned to allow over 80% of seat reservations on trans-Pacific and European routes to be made using mileage until February next year.

However, consumer criticism did not subside regarding these measures. Minister Won also criticized on the 19th, stating, "Instead of offering tearful gratitude promotions, they proposed measures that cause public dissatisfaction."

Ultimately, under such pressure, Korean Air has effectively postponed the mileage reform. Industry insiders expect that Korean Air's mileage reform plan will be announced sometime after April.

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