Asiana Airlines

History

Asiana Airlines was founded on 17 February 1988 (initially as Seoul Airlines) by the Kumho Asiana Group to break Korean Air's decades-long monopoly on South Korean aviation, and began commercial flights in December 1988. It joined Star Alliance in January 2003 and grew into South Korea's second-largest carrier, operating a network of domestic and long-haul international routes from Seoul Incheon.

Current Operations

Asiana continues to operate under its own brand and IATA code from Incheon (with Gimpo for domestic services), but it is in the midst of being absorbed by Korean Air. Korean Air completed acquisition of roughly 63.88% of Asiana on 12 December 2024 for about US$1.6 billion, after clearing antitrust reviews in all 14 required jurisdictions (including divesting Asiana's cargo business to Air Incheon in 2024 to satisfy the US Department of Justice). Integration is proceeding in phases -- new joint branding removing Asiana's old 'red arrow' logo appeared in December 2024, and Asiana's budget-carrier affiliates (Air Busan, Air Seoul) are slated to merge with Korean Air's Jin Air into a single low-cost carrier.

Last verified 2026-08-22· Source: airline public disclosures, company press releases & aviation-industry reporting.

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