Eastar Jet Co. will operate a daily scheduled flight linking Busan and Hong Kong starting next month. Following Incheon, the carrier plans to launch a Hong Kong route from Busan as well, aiming to expand Hong Kong tourists' demand to visit Korea into the provinces.
Eastar Jet Co. said on the 14th it will newly launch the Busan–Hong Kong route on Oct. 25. Operating seven times a week, the flight will depart Busan daily at 9:30 p.m. and arrive in Hong Kong at 12:10 a.m. the next day (local time). The return flight will depart Hong Kong at 2 a.m. and arrive in Busan at 7:05 a.m.
With this launch, Eastar Jet Co.'s Hong Kong routes will increase to two. Eastar Jet Co. began operating the Incheon–Hong Kong route in March and has posted an average load factor of about 90% to date.
In particular, foreigners accounted for about 90% of total passengers on the Incheon–Hong Kong route. Eastar Jet Co. sees the preference among Hong Kong travelers for late-night flights as leading to the high load factor.
Eastar Jet Co. plans to draw Hong Kong-origin demand to visit Korea, confirmed on the Incheon route, to Busan. At the same time, it will increase international flights departing Busan to target local passenger demand.
An Eastar Jet Co. official said, "Through the Incheon–Hong Kong route, demand among Hong Kong residents to visit our country is high," adding, "With the launch of the Busan–Hong Kong route, we will contribute to bringing foreign tourists into the region and revitalizing tourism in Busan."
Eastar Jet Co. currently operates about 50 routes with 23 aircraft. Of these, 15 depart from Busan.