Asiana Airlines (OZ, Seoul Incheon) has asked its cabin crew to take unpaid leave between February 15 and 29, as the carrier looks to slash costs in the wake of its swinging capacity cuts to China in the wake of the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) outbreak. The airline's routes to China account for nearly 20% of its annual sales.
An airline official, speaking to the Yonhap news agency, said that Asiana had 4,078 cabin staff as of February 1, representing 39% of its total workforce of 10,538. Exactly how many cabin crew had taken unpaid leave was not revealed.
In terms of the Chinese routes at Asiana which have been suspended or seen their respective frequency cut for dates through February and March, the details are as follows:
- to Beijing Capital from Incheon and Seoul Gimpo;
- to Shanghai Pudong and Guangzhou from Incheon and Busan;
- to Shanghai Hongqiao from Gimpo;
- to Shenyang Taoxian International from Busan;
- to Hong Kong International, Taichung Ching Chuan Kang, Dalian, Harbin, Tianjin, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Yancheng, Guilin, Changsha Huanghua, Haikou, Chongqing, Chengdu Shuangliu, Xi'an Xianyang, Qingdao Jiaodong, Yantai Penglai International, Weihai, Changchun and Yanji from Incheon.
This news from South Korea's second-largest airline comes after a decision earlier this month by several prominent Chinese carriers to place their foreign pilots on unpaid leave and from Cathay Pacific (CX, Hong Kong International), which also asked all of its 27,000 employees to consider taking unpaid leave between March and June.
