In all my years of following the airline trade, that is the primary time I ever recall seeing one thing like this.
Korean Air backtracks on Boeing 777 retrofit plans
In early August 2025, I coated how Korean Air introduced plans to reconfigure 11 of its Boeing 777-300ERs, as a part of a $216 million cabin overhaul program. With this, we have been imagined to see main adjustments throughout cabins.
Korean Air was planning to take away the primary class cabin, introduce a brand new enterprise class product, add premium economic system seats for the primary time, and introduce a denser economic system product. In the case of economic system, the plan was to go from a 3-3-3 configuration, to a 3-4-3 configuration (with the latter being the trade customary these days, and the previous being exceptionally beneficiant).
Korean Air has already retrofitted its first 777, however has now determined to scrap the economic system retrofit for the remainder of the fleet. The explanation? Nicely, the airline obtained numerous criticism from customers for wanting to maneuver to a tighter economic system product.
It’s not simply customers who criticized the airline, although. Understand that Korean Air not too long ago accomplished its acquisition of Asiana, and the deal confronted numerous regulatory scrutiny. Korea’s authorities wished to make sure that competitors within the aviation sector remained robust, with one of many two full service world carriers within the nation eradicated.
Korea’s Honest Commerce Fee (FTC) warned that plans to introduce tighter seats in economic system may violate situations tied to Korean Air’s merger with Asiana, which included limits on fare will increase, seat reductions, and adjustments to the frequent flyer program, as a way to defend service high quality. In line with FTC Chair nominee Ju Biung-ghi:
“We’ll look not solely at decreased seat dimensions, but in addition at broader issues affecting shopper welfare. Ought to any breach of the corrective situations be recognized, a powerful regulatory response shall be crucial.”
So Korean Air has determined to take care of the 3-4-3 structure in economic system on the one aircraft that has already been reconfigured, however then plans to retain the 3-3-3 structure on the remaining 10 planes that have been imagined to be reconfigured. Nonetheless, these planes will nonetheless be getting the remaining cabin overhauls, together with new premium economic system and enterprise class.
I’m not even positive what to make of this reversal?
To start with, what a messy state of affairs that is for Korean Air. New airplane seats need to be ordered a very long time upfront, and presumably most of the tighter seats the airline was supposed to put in have already been manufactured. What occurs with these now? Can they be used on a distinct plane, can they be resold to a different airline, or what?
Subsequent, I’m confused whether or not shifting to a tighter economic system product really violates the situations the airline agreed to, or if Korean Air simply needs to keep away from unhealthy press and scrutiny, provided that the merger was only recently permitted.
Korean Air has agreed to take care of its service high quality by way of 2034, although particularly on 40 key routes the place competitors was a priority. Korean Air was going to then deploy these reconfigured 777s particularly on routes aside from these 40, for this actual cause. In early August, a Korean Air spokesperson shared the next:
“We’ll adjust to the corrective measures imposed by the Honest Commerce Fee upon the merger. We’re contemplating deploying the renewed plane on routes aside from these topic to corrective measures amongst a complete of 96 routes.”
So yeah, I’m unsure why precisely the change of coronary heart now? Korean Air has all the time been one of many extra egalitarian Asian carriers on the market. The provider’s first and enterprise class have been uncompetitive in comparison with the area’s prime carriers, whereas its economic system product has been superior. The 777s at present have a 3-3-3 configuration and 33″ of pitch, which is mainly extraordinary. I assume that is finally nice information for customers, uncommon of a improvement as this can be.
Backside line
Korean Air was planning on introducing tighter economic system seats on a subfleet of its Boeing 777s, as half of a bigger cabin overhaul undertaking. The airline obtained fairly a little bit of backlash over these deliberate adjustments, and I assume the corporate finally gave in.
Whereas the primary aircraft has already been reconfigured, Korean Air has now scrapped plans to reconfigure its remaining 777s with tighter economic system seats. Korean Air needed to make fairly just a few concessions as a part of its takeover of Asiana, but it surely appeared like these adjustments wouldn’t have violated that… however now there’s concern that they’d’ve?
What do you make of Delta’s A350-1000s, the power of the Seoul Incheon hub, and Delta’s superior income efficiency? What do you make of Korean Air backtracking on its Boeing 777 retrofit plans?
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