This week saw Air Premia make three announcements regarding its Summer 2023 network from Seoul Incheon Airport.
Such an adjustment sees one route being suspended but replaced with two long-haul routes.
Without further ado, let’s get into it…
Suspension of Seoul-Singapore…
The first announcement sees Air Premia suspend its services between Seoul Incheon and Singapore, effective from today.
There is no reasoning for the suspension of the route, with the carrier mentioning that this will be in place until “further notice”.
It is unclear when this service will be reinstated, but Air Premia said that “We will notify you again if there are any future flight plans and updates”.
So it means that there will be more to follow in due course.
Air Premia To Launch Incheon-New York in May…
The second announcement from the day of announcements saw Air Premia announce services between New York’s Newark and Seoul Incheon from May 22.
Below is the table for the scheduling:
| Route | Flight Number | Departure | Arrival | Operation Date |
| ICN to EWR | YP131 | 21:05 | 22:20 | Every Monday/ Wednesday/ Friday/ Sunday |
| EWR to ICN | YP132 | 00:30 | 04:25 (+1) | Every Monday/ Tuesday/ Thursday/ Saturday |
Air Premia noted that this service is still subject to government approval and that the schedule or the aircraft model may change without notice.
Say “Hallo” To Frankfurt from South Korea…
The other announcement will see Air Premia say “Hallo” to Frankfurt on June 27, with the scheduling as follows:
| Route | Flight Number | Departure Time | Arrival | Operation Date |
| ICN to FRA | YP231 | 11:05 | 16:45 | Tuesday/ Wednesday/ Friday (27Jun2023 ~ 28Oct2023) |
| ICN to FRA | YP231 | 11:05 | 16:50 | Sunday (02Jul2023 ~ 22Oct2023) |
| FRA to ICN | YP232 | 19:00 | 13:55+1 | Tuesday/ Wednesday/ Sunday (27Jun2023 ~ 25Oct2023) |
| FRA to ICN | YP232 | 18:50 | 13:55+1 | Friday (30Jun2023 ~ 28Jul2023) |
| FRA to ICN | YP232 | 19:00 | 13:55+1 | Friday (04Aug2023 ~ 27Oct2023) |
It remains clear that Air Premia is operating routes to destinations from Seoul that have opportunities for growth and have significant secondary connections onwards for them to take advantage of.
Air Premia’s Fleet Currently…
As per Planespotters.net, the carrier currently has a fleet of three Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners at the time of writing.
They are:
- HL8387 – Delivered March 2021.
- HL8388 – Delivered October 2022.
- HL8517 – Delivered September 2022.
HL8516 is currently due for delivery, with HL8389 currently on order and awaiting a delivery time.
Air Premia’s Boeing 787s, which are based in Seoul, sit 56 passengers in Premium Economy and 256 in Economy.
Overall…
It remains clear that the airline is very much in the period of testing out what routes work for its network.
Whatever the reasoning behind the suspension of the Singapore services, the addition of Frankfurt and New York shows where the demand is from Seoul.
All eyes will be on the carrier to see how these routes perform and whether they will remain on a permanent basis or subsequently be suspended again.
Either way, it’s not going to hurt trying out new markets, as ultimately, success is the end goal for the South Korean carrier.
