Asiana Miles Kept for 10 Years... More Bonus Seats Available

[Anchor]

Ahead of the merger between Korean Air and Asiana Airlines this coming December, the much-anticipated plan for integrating mileage has been finalized. Even after the merger, Asiana mileage can be used just as it is for the next 10 years to purchase Korean Air tickets, and the number of bonus seats available for mileage will also increase.

Reporter Hong Yeongjae has the details.

[Reporter]

One of the major hurdles in creating a mega-carrier combining Korean Air and Asiana Airlines was the integration of mileage.

In particular, Asiana's mileage, which is the subject of the acquisition, was the key issue.

The Fair Trade Commission decided that Asiana mileage can be used as it is for 10 years without any changes to its expiration date, based on December 17, the scheduled merger date of the two airlines.

It can be used to purchase Korean Air tickets, upgrade seats, or for shopping just as before.

After 10 years, it will automatically convert to Korean Air mileage, and passengers can also apply to convert it in advance before then.

However, when converting, the ratio will vary depending on how the mileage was earned.

Mileage earned by boarding Asiana flights will be converted directly into Korean Air mileage at a 1:1 ratio.

Mileage earned through partner companies such as credit cards will be adjusted at a ratio of 1 to 0.82, meaning 1,000 Asiana miles will become 820 Korean Air miles.

What passengers are worried about is whether there will be enough seats available to actually use their mileage.

[Interview / Kim Jong-eok / Gangnam-gu, Seoul: When I want to use my mileage to board, seats are limited or flight schedules are limited.]

The Fair Trade Commission mandated that for the next 10 years, the usage performance of mileage tickets and seat upgrades must be maintained at or above the combined performance of both airlines at the time of the business combination.

In particular, for long-haul and popular routes such as the U.S., Europe, and Oceania, the usage performance of bonus seats must be maintained at least at the level of 2023, which was the highest among the past 10 years.

[Interview / Jeon Seong-bok, Director General for Corporate Cooperation and Merger Review, Fair Trade Commission: To prevent operating in a way that increases bonus seats only during the off-season and reduces them during peak seasons, Korean Air must submit its supply status of bonus seats during peak seasons to the compliance monitoring committee every year.]

In addition, the actual mileage usage will be increased step-by-step so that starting in 2030, it will be maintained at a level 21% higher than last year.

Korean Air plans to deploy special mileage flights focusing on peak seasons and popular routes if necessary.

(Video Reported by Kim Nam-sung | Video Edited by Chae Cheol-ho | Design by Lee Jun-ho | Producers: Kim Do-gyun, Han Seung-ho | XR: Lee Jun-ho, Jeon Yu-geun)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.