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Korean Air adjusts Boeing 747 routes ahead of schedule

Korean Air adjusts Boeing 747 routes ahead of schedule
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Justin Foster Private Aviation Journalist | Simple Flying

Korean Air will remove the Boeing 747 from its Honolulu flights more than a month sooner than previously planned, redirecting the aircraft to Singapore instead. The airline has eight remaining passenger-configured 747-8i aircraft and plans to operate them on seven routes until the end of the year.

Korean Air is one of three scheduled Boeing 747 passenger airlines serving the US, alongside Air China and Lufthansa. Initially, Korean Air intended to fly the 747-8 to Honolulu until October 4. However, based on a recent schedule update, the last Hawaii service for this aircraft type will now be on August 30. As a result, Korean Air's US 747 flights have been reduced by a third between August 31 and October 4.

An analysis of schedules using Cirium data shows that Korean Air has deployed various models of the 747 to Honolulu over the past decade, except during the COVID-19 pandemic years of 2020 and 2021. This year has seen fewer jumbo flights compared to previous years. In recent years, there was continuous operation of the "Queen of the Skies" on this route.

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The updated schedule indicates that starting August 31, the 368-seat 747-8 will be replaced by a smaller 291-seat Boeing 777-300ER until October 4. From October 5 onward, a Boeing 787-9 with a seating capacity of 269 will take over. The schedule for using the Boeing 747 in 2025 remains uncertain.

The specific flight details are as follows:

- Seoul Incheon-Honolulu: KE53 departs at 21:05 and arrives at 10:55 (same day; flight duration: 8 hours and 50 minutes)

- Honolulu-Seoul Incheon: KE54 departs at 13:05 and arrives at 17:45+1 (flight duration: 9 hours and 40 minutes)

In addition to changes in its Honolulu service, Korean Air’s latest plan for its remaining passenger-configured Boeing 747s includes new destinations:

- Seoul Incheon-New York JFK: Ten weekly flights in July; daily in August and September; increasing to double daily from October.

- Seoul Incheon-Atlanta: Daily service.

- Seoul Incheon-London Heathrow: Daily until October.

- Seoul Incheon-Los Angeles: Daily starting October.

- Seoul Incheon-Singapore: Daily from August through early October.

- Seoul Incheon-Paris CDG: One flight in mid-August.

These adjustments reflect Korean Air's ongoing strategy to optimize its fleet utilization amid evolving market demands.

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