Korean Air to Import New B747-8F Cargo Airplanes

Part of efforts to strengthen its air cargo flight business and recapture top position in global rankings

Korean Airlines plans to recapture its position as the top air cargo carrier in the world by importing seven new B747-8F air cargo carriers by 2015 along with its new strategy to go for high value-added businesses, the airline said recently.
Korean Air's plan is set to touch off a stiff competition with Cathay Pacific Airlines, the current top air cargo carrier, as the Hong Kong-based airline plans to build a new cargo terminal and import new air cargo planes like Korean Air to make sure it will not lose its top position in the air cargo flight business.
Korean Air took delivery of two new Boeing B747-8F air cargo carriers on Feb. 7 and will import five more of them by 2015. The new air cargo carrier holds 16 percent more cargo, or 134 tons, than the old B747-400F air cargo carrier that Korean Air has been flying.
This year, Korean Air will take delivery of two Boeing B777-F2, another new type of air cargo plane, under its strategy to change its air cargo plane fleet to planes that can handle larger cargoes with higher fuel efficiency.
A key Korean Air official said the airline wants to boost its competitive edge in the international air cargo market by flying new high-tech cargo planes since they are more fuel-efficient and can cope better with the toughened environmental regulations.
Cathay Pacific, too, is going all out to keep its global top position in the air cargo market, which the airline captured in 2010 by beating Korean Air with a bold investment in new air cargo planes. The airline imported four B747-8F planes last year and is expected to get four more this year. The airline also invested $700 million to build a new cargo terminal at Hong Kong International Airport last year.
Korean Air, which continuously maintained its top position in air cargo flights from 2004, lost the position to Cathay Pacific due mostly to enormous increases in air cargoes from China, although Korean Air also had its share of cargo flights increase.
According to data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Korean Air transported 9.487 billion tons/km in 2010, while Cathay Pacific's share came to 9.587 billion tons/km, 100 million tons/km more than Korean Air.
Korean Air's strategy to strengthen its air cargo business is based on its projection that air cargoes will increase in the near future, recovering from the sluggish state of the past several years due mostly to a slowdown in IT product shipments to Europe and the United States and China's restrictive measures coupled with high oil prices that sapped the profitability of global airliners by as much as 60 percent.
Global air cargo freights totaled 127.449 billion tons, down 6.2 percent from a year ago. Korean Air gets about 30 percent of its revenue from handling international air cargoes annually.
Cathay Pacific, too, saw its air cargo freights drop by 8.6 percent last year, but it is projected to keep its top position in the global air cargo freight market thanks to increases in air cargoes from China.
A Korean Air official said the airline will strengthen its air cargo network by finding new hubs and will go for highly profitable air cargoes including fresh and cargoes that require special care in an effort to focus more on quality than quantity. nw

A Korean Air cargo plane loading cargoes at its terminal in Incheon Int'l Airport.