Air Premia Uses The Boeing 787 To Complete Its First Flight

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Another airline entered the crowded South Korean aviation market on Wednesday, with Air Premia operating its inaugural flight between Gimpo and Jeju. Air Premia joins ten low-cost carriers and two full-service airlines now fighting for market share in South Korea.

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Air Premia operated its first fare paying flights on Wednesday. Photo: Air Premia

Two Air Premia return flights from Gimpo on Wednesday

On Wednesday morning, YP541 pushed back from Gimpo International Airport (GMP) for the inaugural one-hour flight down to Jeju International Airport (CJU). Over the course of the day, Air Premia’s single Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner flew two return services on the route.

It was a low-key launch for an airline that originally held loftier ambitions than shuttling around on short-haul domestic routes.  Air Premia was founded by ex-Jeju Air president Kim Jong-Cheol who started raising money for his new airline three years ago.

Air Premia wasn’t looking at flying within South Korea. Instead, Air Premia styled itself as a “hybrid” carrier focused on medium and long-haul routes. Air Premia was eyeing six-hour plus international routes. North America, Europe, and Oceania were all on the radar.

Originally, Air Premia planned to start flights in September 2020. In 2019, Simple Flying reported Air Premia was eyeing flying to Honolulu, Vancouver, Munich (or Berlin), and Cairns. Global events changed that timeline. But even as September 2020 came and went, Air Premia wasn’t abandoning its international flying plans.

Travel restrictions curtail Air Premia’s international aspirations

As countries began shutting their borders in March 2020, South Korea acted, suspending visa waivers for citizens from the 88 countries that had toughened their entry requirements for South Koreans. Flying in and out of South Korea suddenly got much harder.

Towards the end of 2020 and now possessing a single Dreamliner, Air Premia refined their preferred launch destinations to San Jose and Los Angles.

Since then, the international travel environment hasn’t improved much around Asia. Towards the end of 2020, the number of flights between Asia and the United States was down around 38%. Fast forward to Air Premia’a inaugural flight yesterday, and that statistic is now 36%.

Throw South Korea’s current quarantine rules into the mix, and it is no wonder Air Premia decided to drop their international flying aspirations for the time being and stick closer to home.

Air Premia’s hard task flying on its home turf

But flying within South Korea right now is no easy task either. Domestic airline capacity is around half of 2019 levels in a notoriously competitive market. Air Premia is shooting for the tricky “hybrid” middle market, offering competitive fares with a touch of full-service luxe.

The problem many hybrid carriers experience, especially startups, is that passengers board expecting to pay low-cost carrier prices and receive the red carpet full-service treatment. Consequently, passenger expectations often remain unmet. It is a tough market space to occupy. It is made all the tougher by the current barriers to travel, both within South Korea and elsewhere.

Despite the obstacles Air Premia has faced getting into the air, the airline hasn’t dropped its international flight plans. Acknowledging the situation was dynamic and subject to change, AIr Premia CEO Peter Sim told South Korean media this week they were looking to fly further afield than Jeju.

“We are planning to offer flights on routes to Southeast Asia as early as November and the United States in the second quarter of next year.”



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