Korean Air is launching new direct passenger and cargo services to Budapest, Hungary.

The new cargo service to Budapest will launch on 21 February, deploying a Boeing 777F freighter. The airline will operate cargo flights twice a week on Fridays and Sundays to meet the growing air cargo demand to Hungary.

E-commerce increasing demand

The flight will depart from Incheon International Airport in Seoul at 07:20 and return after making stops at Budapest and Frankfurt. The airline says cargo demand to Hungary has increased sharply due to the import for mobile devices from China and e-commerce from Korea. Korean Air forecasts that by developing its operations to cover this new cargo market it will achieve improved profitability.

Reinforcing competitiveness

The new passenger flights between Incheon and Budapest are scheduled for Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays starting from 23 May. The airline says the route will be operated with an Airbus A330-200, seating 218 passengers.

Korean Air’s core business includes passenger, cargo, aerospace, catering and in-flight sales. The airline’s main hub is at the Incheon (ICN) International Airport Terminal 2 which opened in 2018. The airline, which is a founding member of the SkyTeam airline alliance, launched a joint venture partnership with Delta Air Lines in the trans-Pacific market in May 2018.

Growing hub

Incheon International Airport says it is seeing constant growth with the average annual growth rate of around 7 per cent and companies such as CSafe Global are expanding their facilities at the airport. CSafe’s newly expanded service will allow the company to enhance its support and services for customers transporting temperature-sensitive products to and from South Korea, while additionally serving as an important gateway hub for the greater APAC region.

The new service centre was strategically implemented to accommodate the growing demand for CSafe’s specialised air cargo containers in South Korea and throughout the broader Asia Pacific region.

Find out more about Korean Air here.