The Korea Fair Trade Commission said on the 10th that it sent Korean Air Lines a review report stating, "You must not cut the number of passenger-route seats this year by more than 10% compared with 2019." The review report is equivalent to a prosecutorial indictment and is finalized after a full commission meeting of the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC).
Earlier, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) approved in 2024 the business combination of Korean Air Lines and Asiana Airlines on the condition that they "maintain at least 90% of seats on all routes compared with 2019." The aim was to prevent side effects such as route consolidation as the two companies, which effectively split domestic passenger routes, merge.
However, Korean Air Lines and Asiana Airlines, and their affiliates Jin Air, AIR BUSAN, and AIR SEOUL reportedly asked the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) to exempt or ease the "seat count maintenance" condition for this year only. They cited weakened air passenger demand due to the Middle East war. Under FTC notice, corporations may request changes from the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) when unavoidable changes in circumstances make it difficult to fulfill merger conditions.
In response, an FTC examiner determined that the request by Korean Air Lines and others should be dismissed. The examiner said, "Based on ticketing records, after estimating this year's total air passenger demand for each route, overall demand contraction did not appear on any routes despite the outbreak of the Middle East war and the resulting rise in oil prices and exchange rates."
The Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) also rejected Korean Air Lines' request to allow a reduction in seats on the Cheongju-Jeju route. The examiner said, "It is hard to see that there have been new changes in circumstances making it difficult to comply with the corrective order on the Cheongju route after Dec. 24, 2024, when the FTC finalized the corrective order."
In addition, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) included in the review report a view that three Korean Air Lines employees should be referred to prosecutors on suspicion of obstructing an investigation. In February, the FTC visited Korean Air Lines' headquarters to investigate the request to change the corrective order. At that time, three employees allegedly deleted work computer files and emails. Under the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act, those who obstruct an investigation can face up to two years in prison or a fine of up to 150 million won.