Korea's Asiana faces appeal from failed 2020 takeover bid

Local consortium eyes Korea's Air Busan

US DoJ set to block Korean Air/Asiana merger - report

EC voices concerns about Korean Air - Asiana merger

Less than three months before a decision date deadline, the European Commission continues to hold concerns that the merger between Korean Air (KE, Seoul Incheon) and Asiana Airlines (OZ, Seoul Incheon) may have a significant competitive impact.

In a statement, the European Commission said that it has sent Korean Air a statement of their objections to the proposed merger. This follows the opening of an in-depth investigation in February. The European Commission is the EU's executive arm. Specifically, the commission has concerns on two fronts, including that the provision of passenger transport services may be reduced on four routes between South Korea and France, Germany, Italy, and Spain and that the provision of cargo transport services may be reduced between all of Europe and South Korea.

"Korean Air and Asiana compete head-to-head in carrying passengers and cargo between the EEA (European Economic Area) and South Korea. Together, they would be by far the largest carriers of passengers and cargo on these routes and the merger may remove an important alternative for customers," reads the...

Korea's Jeju Air confronts B737 MAX delivery delays

A resurgent Jeju Air (7C, Jeju) may have its wings clipped by production delays at Boeing. The low-cost carrier is now chasing Asiana Airlines (OZ, Seoul Incheon) to become the country's second largest carrier and plans to shortly begin introducing forty B737 MAX aircraft that it ordered in 2018. However, the timeline to do so will depend on Boeing's ability to deliver.

Last week, Jeju Air announced a first quarter operating profit of KRW70.7 billion won (USD52.8 million) against revenues of KRW422.3 billion (USD315.4 million). It is now on track to become the country's second largest carrier, relegating Asiana Airlines to third place. But the introduction of the B737-8s may be slower than planned. When the order was first announced, deliveries were set to start in 2022. Currently, Jeju Air anticipates receiving one of the type, its first, in the second half of 2023, with deliveries scheduled until 2028. Initially, Jeju Air intends to deploy the MAX onto sectors into Japan, where it has a commanding market share.

Despite the delivery...