Asiana Launches
Incheon-Paris Flight

Flying three times weekly will bring a 20 percent seat increase, easing the chronic shortage

On March 31, Asiana Airlines inaugurated flights between Incheon International Airport and Paris three times per week -- Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Asiana Airlines President Kang Ju-an, French Ambassador to Korea Philippe Thiebaud and Incheon International Airport Authority CEO Lee Jay-hee attended a ceremony to launch the flight at 12:20 p.m. at the Incheon International Airport departure lounge.
An inaugural flight departed Incheon International Airport for Paris at 1:15 p.m. on March 31 and arrived in Paris at 6:30 p.m. (local time in Paris) on the same day. Another flight left Paris at 9:20 p.m. and arrived in Incheon at 3:20 p.m. the following day.
Asiana's inauguration of a flight between Incheon and Paris will not only enable an aviation hub in Paris together with the existing hubs in London and Frankfurt, but also allow the national flag carrier to put on the market diverse flight products by stepping up collaboration efforts,
such as code-sharing flights with Star Alliance member airlines and securing flights linking major European cities.
Only Korean Air (KAL) has been operating flights to and from Paris for the past 34 years. In 1973 Korean Air was awarded the exclusive right to the route from the French government, leading to a chronic shortage of seats. Asiana's inauguration of the Incheon-Paris flights will bring a 20 percent seat increase, easing the shortage and customers'discomfort.
Earlier, in cooperation with the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Asiana Airlines on March 23 unveiled a fuselage decorated with images of the Gyeonghaeru Pavilion and the Arc de Triumph, landmarks of Seoul and Paris, as part of its efforts to publicize the inauguration of the new flight.
Asiana offers diverse discounted flight tickets, including one commemorating the inauguration of the flight and one catering to backpackers. Lotteries will be also held for business class upgrade tickets and bottles of wine for Incheon-Paris ticket holders.
French-style roast beef cooked by the in-flight menu development senior chef and flight attendant-chef will be served to business class passengers on the Incheon-Paris flight twice per month while the sole French government-approved sommelier in Korea will be on board. Passengers flying on the Incheon-Paris route by April 30 will be allowed to utilize Asiana's business lounge for 501 frequent flyer miles, in honor of the name of the flight "OZ501."Asiana had requested the French government to allow both airlines the right to launch flights many times since 1997. In January 2007, Seoul and Paris reached an agreement on the matter.
Beginning in the summer of 2010, Asiana will be allowed to raise the frequency of Incheon-Paris flights from three times to four times per week. Asiana hopes that future Korean and French aviation talks will agree on raising the flight frequency of the Incheon-Paris flight to seven times per week, equivalent to the current level of the Incheon-Frankfurt flight. nw

Asiana Airlines President Kang Joo-an, Incheon International Airport Corp. President Lee Jae-hee and French Amb. to Korea Philippe Theibaud cut the tape to inaugurate a Asiana flight from Seoul to Paris during a ceremony. (above photo) The fuselage of Seoul-Paris flights is decorated with the images of the Gyeonghaeru Pavilion and the Arc de Triumph , landmarks of Seoul and Paris.