Alaska Airlines will begin operations on the Incheon International Airport and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport route starting in September. With U.S. routes, domestic low-cost carriers (LCC) are also strengthening their services, suggesting heightened competition.
According to the aviation industry on the 26th, Alaska Airlines will start its direct service on the Incheon-Seattle route from Sept. 12. It will operate five times a week using the A330-200 aircraft acquired last year from Hawaiian Airlines.
Alaska Airlines' entry into Incheon Airport aligns with its vision to make its hub airport, Tacoma International Airport, a global gateway. In preparation for its Incheon operations last January, Alaska Airlines temporarily suspended its interline agreement with the domestic LCC, Air Premia.
With Alaska Airlines operating U.S. direct routes, competition is expected to intensify. Air Premia is pushing to launch services to Seattle within the year, and T’way Air is also planning to strengthen its services to Vancouver, Canada, as well as U.S. routes. Besides Guam and Saipan, major carriers like Korean Air, Asiana Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and American Airlines also operate direct routes to the U.S.
Airlines are strengthening U.S. routes because they are more profitable than medium- and short-haul routes. U.S. routes have a higher number of transfer passengers, which incur less expense for promotional efforts to sell flights. Last year, among passengers on U.S. routes, transfer passengers accounted for 2,619,543, or 40% of the total. In contrast, Asia and Europe accounted for about 6%.