More flyers in February as LCCs continue to expand

Over 8 million people flew on passenger planes in February 2016, marking a strong increase from last year, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on Tuesday.

In February, about 2.28 million people took domestic flights in Korea while 5.85 million people took international flights. The numbers showed an approximate 15 percent increase in passengers both domestic and international, relative to February 2015.

The Transport Ministry said that the 15.3 percent increase in international passengers could be attributed to the increased number of flights and destinations made possible by the rise of low-cost carriers, as well as reduced ticket prices thanks to the low price of fuel.

Korean low-cost carriers flew 18.3 percent of international passengers, up from 13.2 percent in February of last year.

All five of Korea’s LCCs – Air Busan, Eastar Jet, Jeju Air, Jin Air, and T’way Airlines – showed strong on-year growth in the international sector. Korean Air affiliate Jin Air led the pack with 86.3 percent growth, flying nearly 320,000 international passengers in February.

By Won Ho-jung (hjwon@heraldcorp.com)