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Air Koryo (Korean: 고려항공; Hancha: 高麗航空; MR: Koryŏ Hanggong) is North Korea’s flag carrier and only commercial airline.[3] It is state-owned and controlled by the North Korean air force.[3] Headquartered in Sunan-guyŏk, Pyongyang,[4] it operates domestic and international routes – on a regular schedule only to Beijing, Shenyang, and Vladivostok[5][6][7] – from its hub at Pyongyang’s Sunan International Airport.[8] It also operates flights on behalf of the North Korean government, with one of its aircraft serving as North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong Un's personal plane.[9][10][11][12] Its fleet consists of Ilyushin and Tupolev aircraft from the Soviet Union and Russia, and Antonovs from Ukraine.
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| Founded | 21 September 1955 (as Korean Airways) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hubs | Pyongyang International Airport | ||||||
| Fleet size | 20 | ||||||
| Destinations | 4 | ||||||
| Parent company | National Aviation Administration of the DPRK[2] | ||||||
| Headquarters | Ryongbung-ri, Sunan District, Pyongyang, North Korea | ||||||
| Key people | An Pyong-chil (Director of the General Bureau of Civil Aviation) | ||||||
| Website | www | ||||||
| Air Koryo | |
| Chosŏn'gŭl | |
|---|---|
| Hancha | |
| Revised Romanization | Goryeo Hanggong |
| McCune–Reischauer | Koryŏ Hanggong |
Air Koryo’s history can be traced to the founding of the Soviet–North Korean Airline (SOKAO) in 1950.[13] Following the Korean War, in 1955, the airline was reorganized as Korean Airways and started domestic and international routes to other communist Eastern Bloc states in Asia and Europe.[14] Another reorganization followed after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and in 1993, the airline adopted its current name, Air Koryo.[15] Due to its aging fleet of Soviet aircraft and related safety and maintenance concerns, Air Koryo was banned in the European Union between 2006 and 2020, when it was allowed to resume operations into the EU with their newly acquired Tu-204 aircraft.[16]
During the rule of Kim Jong Un, Air Koryo also started branching out into commercial sectors beyond aviation, such as ground transportation and consumer goods.[17]
The COVID-19 pandemic caused Air Koryo to suspend regular operations, with no scheduled international flights between 2020 and 2023.[18]
Early years
In early 1950, SOKAO (Soviet–Korean Airline, 소련-조선항공; 蘇聯-朝鮮航空) was established as a joint North Korean-Soviet venture to connect Pyongyang with Moscow.[13][14] Regular flights began that same year.[19] Services were suspended during the Korean War, resuming in 1953 as Bureau of Civil Aviation Ministry of Transport of DPRK. The state airline was then placed under the control of the Civil Aviation Administration of Korea (CAAK) and re-branded Korean Airways (조선민항; 朝鮮民航), starting operations on 21 September 1955 with Lisunov Li-2, Antonov An-2 and Ilyushin Il-12 aircraft. Ilyushin Il-14s and Ilyushin Il-18s were added to the fleet in the 1960s.[8][14][20]
Expansion
Jet operations commenced in 1975 when the first Tupolev Tu-154 was delivered for service from Pyongyang to Prague, East Berlin, and Moscow with refueling stops in Irkutsk and Novosibirsk. As the Tu-154 had insufficient range, the aircraft refueled at Irkutsk and Novosibirsk. Tu-134s and An-24s were also delivered to start domestic services.[21] The Tu-154 fleet was increased at the start of the 1980s, while the first long-haul Ilyushin Il-62 was delivered back in 1979 (two of these aircraft are used in VIP configuration),[22] allowing Korean Airways to offer a direct non-stop service to Moscow for the first time, as well as serving Sofia and Belgrade.[15]
Alongside Soviet aircraft, North Korea also considered acquiring Concorde supersonic jets for Air Koryo under a plan by Kim Il Sung to boost the country's international prestige. North Korea and Aérospatiale and British Aerospace – Concorde's two European manufacturers – signed a preliminary purchase agreement with the country for two Concordes in 1979, but the deal never proceeded because of North Korea's economic challenges and Cold War tensions between East and West.[23]
21st century
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The end of the Cold War and the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe saw a vast reduction in the number of international services offered. Korean Airways re-branded as Air Koryo on 28 March 1992, and in 1993, ordered three Ilyushin Il-76 freight aircraft to carry cargo to and from its destinations in China and Russia.[21][15][24]
Air Koryo purchased a Tupolev Tu-204-300 aircraft in December 2007 and another in March 2010 to replace its aging international fleet. With the Tu-204, Air Koryo would be able to fly to Europe.[25][26]
Due to safety and maintenance concerns, Air Koryo was added to the list of air carriers banned in the European Union in March 2006. The European Commission found evidence of serious safety deficiencies on the part of Air Koryo during ramp inspections in France and Germany. Air Koryo persistently failed to address these issues during other subsequent ramp inspections performed by the EU under the SAFA programme, pointing to blatant systemic safety deficiencies at Air Koryo operations. The airline failed to reply to an inquiry by the French Civil Aviation Authority regarding its safety operations, pointing to a lack of transparency or communication on the part of Air Koryo. The plan by Air Koryo for corrective action, presented in response to France's request, was found to be inadequate and insufficient. The EC also held that North Korean authorities did not adequately oversee the flag carrier, which it was obliged to do under the Chicago Convention. Therefore, on the basis of the common criteria,[27] the Commission assessed that Air Koryo did not meet the relevant safety standards.[28]
In September 2009, Air Koryo ordered an additional example of the Tupolev Tu-204-300 aircraft and a single Tupolev Tu-204-100. Air Koryo was to receive its first of two Tupolev Tu-204-100B aircraft fitted with 210 seats. Flights to Dalian in China were added to the Air Koryo schedule. Also, twice weekly Tu-134 flights from Pyongyang and direct services from Pyongyang to Shanghai Pudong were inaugurated with a two weekly service on JS522 and returning on JS523[29] in 2010.[30]
In March 2010, Air Koryo was allowed to resume operations into the EU with their Tu-204 aircraft, which were fitted with the necessary equipment to comply with mandatory international standards. Currently, the Tu-204 is the only aircraft Air Koryo operates that is allowed into EU airspace.[31][32][33] In April 2011, Air Koryo launched its first services to Malaysia with the inauguration of flights from Pyongyang to Kuala Lumpur.[34] The flights operated twice a week utilizing the Tu-204, but were cancelled in mid-2017 due to sanctions imposed resulting from the poisoning murder of Kim Jong-nam at Kuala Lumpur International Airport by suspected North Korean agents.[35]
In 2011, Air Koryo also inaugurated services to Kuwait City, being operated weekly by Tu-204 aircraft. The services operate during peak travel season – April to October.[36]
In 2012, Air Koryo resumed flights to Kuala Lumpur but ceased the service in 2014 along with its expansion into Harbin, China.[37][38] In 2012, Juche Travel Services, a company operating tours to North Korea, launched "aviation enthusiast" tours using chartered Air Koryo aircraft, which offered visitors the chance to fly on every type of Air Koryo aircraft within North Korea, the Mil-17, An-24, Tu-134, Tu-154, and Il-62. The international services were operated by An-148, Tu-154, or Tu-204.[39]
In 2017, during the rule of North Korean Chairman Kim Jong-un, there were signs that Air Koryo was branching out into commercial sectors beyond aviation, providing goods and services as diverse as petrol stations, taxis, tobacco, soft drinks, and tinned pheasant meat.[17][40]
As of 2021, two further Tupolev Tu-204-100B aircraft were allegedly prepared to be leased to Air Koryo.[41] However, both have since been sighted with the name of Sky KG Airlines added on top of Air Koryo's colors and have been moved to Zhukovsky International Airport by Moscow, where they remain as of November 2023.[42] Intelligence and media reports suggest that North Korea might still be trying to acquire these two jets with Russian assistance as of November 2023.[5]
COVID-19 pandemic
Air Koryo was severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. On 24 January 2020, the airline canceled several flights to China – to Macao, Shanghai, and Shenyang – and on 1 February canceled its two remaining international routes to Beijing and Vladivostok.[43][44] International flights remained canceled through August 2023, flying anew on 22 August to Beijing and on 25 August to Vladivostok using Tu–204 aircraft.[45][46]
The company flew to neighboring China to collect COVID-19-related supplies.[47][48]
Scheduled international services are only operated from Pyongyang to Beijing, Shenyang, and Vladivostok;[5][6][45] additional destinations not listed on their website, but showing up elsewhere as charters or seasonal charter services are also included.[49][50][51][52][53][54]
The first regular charter flights between North Korea and South Korea began in 2003. The first Air Koryo flight operated by a Tu-154 touched down at Seoul's Incheon International Airport. Air Koryo operated 40 return services to Seoul, along with flights into Yangyang and Busan in South Korea.[55] Inter-Korean charters from Hamhung's Sondok Airport to Yangyang International in South Korea began in 2002.[56] Currently, there are no inter-Korean flights, due to laws in both countries. In 2014, Air Koryo operated a series of services to Seoul Incheon International Airport with Tu-204 and An-148 aircraft for the 2014 Asian Games held in Incheon.[57][58][59]
Air Koryo operated an airline interline partnership with Aeroflot (SkyTeam) on services radiating from Vladivostok and Pyongyang until 2017 when it was forced to close the agreement due to newly imposed sanctions.[60][61]
Current fleet
As of June 2024, Air Koryo operates the following fleet for international routes:[7][62]
| Air Koryo fleet | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aircraft | In service | Orders | Passengers | Notes | ||||
| C | Y | Total | ||||||
| Antonov An-148-100B | 2 | — | 8 | 62 | 70 | Original order in 2013 was for two An-148s and one An-158.[63] | ||
| Ilyushin Il-62M | ||||||||
| 2 | — | VIP | Operated for the Government of North Korea.[22] One plane in all-white livery used as personal transport for Kim Jong Un.[9][10][11] | |||||
| Tupolev Tu-204-100B | 1 | — | 12 | 210 | 222 | Former Red Wings Airlines aircraft acquired through a shell company.[22] | ||
| Tupolev Tu-204-300 | 1 | — | 8 | 136 | 142 | This particular aircraft was converted from a Tu-204-100.[64] | ||
| Total | 6 | — | ||||||
Historic, domestic routes fleet and unknown status
- Ilyushin Il-18 1 in service (P-835) and 1 parked (P-836) (Most likely retired) P-835: new livery
- Tupolev Tu-154 2 in service (P-552 and P-561) and 2 stored (retired) (P-551 and P-553) P-552 and P-561: new livery
- Tupolev Tu-134 2 in service (P-813 and P-814) P-813: new livery
- Ilyushin Il-62 1 in service (P-885) and 2 stored (P-881 and P-882) and 1 (P-889) written off in 1983 P-881* and P-885: new livery * The plane wasn't painted with the title of the airline
- Antonov An-24 It is unknown if any are in service. But there are 3 in the fleet (P-532, P-533, P-537) P-533 is likely stored, and P-532 and P-537 may still be flying. P-532 and P-537: new livery
- Ilyushin Il-76 3 in service (P-912, P-913, P-914) P-913 and P-914: new livery
- Lisunov Li-2
- Air Koryo may have been planning to add either a Ilyushin 86 or 96 to its fleet, according to a 1993 timetable. [65]
Tupolev Tu-204
The first Tupolev Tu-204-300 for Air Koryo was officially handed over to the carrier on 27 December 2007, and was ferried from Ulyanovsk to Pyongyang. It has been fitted out with 16 business class seats and the remaining 150 seats are economy. The Tu-204 aircraft are currently scheduled on all international flights out of Pyongyang. With the arrival of the new aircraft, a new seasonal route to Singapore was introduced and the Pyongyang-Bangkok route was resumed in 2008. Its first revenue-earning flight was made on 8 May 2008. Air Koryo operates another version of the Tu-204 jet, a Tu-204-100B, which they took delivery of on 4 March 2010. The Tu-204-300 is a shortened version of the Tu-204-100B.[66] It started operating scheduled services on 5 March 2010.[67] On 30 March 2010, the two Tupolev Tu-204 have been given the rights to operate into the European Union.[31] The two Tu-204 remain the only planes the airline is allowed to operate on services to the EU.[68]
Gallery
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The Air Koryo livery consisted of a white and grey fuselage and a horizontal stripe in national colors along the windows dividing the upper and lower parts into white and grey respectively. The Korean name Air Koryo is painted above the windows and a North Korean flag is painted on the vertical stabilizer.
Now most of their planes are painted in new livery. It consists of a full white body and grey belly which are divided with a thin red stripe. The name of the airline is painted in Korean in front and in English in the middle with the North Korean flag and registration on the vertical stabilizer.
In 2024, Air Koryo started changing its crane logo following Kim Jong Un's announcement, at the end of 2023, that North Korea will no longer seek reunification with South Korea. The old logo was a stylized crane whose wings resembled the Korean peninsula as a unified whole, while the crane wings of the new logo consist of tapered horizontal lines that no longer resemble the peninsula.[69]
- On 30 June 1979, a Korean Airways Tupolev Tu-154B sustained landing gear and wing damage at Budapest Ferihegy Airport in Hungary. On final approach to Runway 31, the pilot realised the plane would undershoot and brought the nose of the plane up without applying power. The aircraft stalled, and with a hard landing, the right landing gear collapsed, causing the right wing to strike the ground and sustain substantial wing structure damage. There were no fatalities, and aircraft P-551 was subsequently repaired and returned to service.[70]
- On 1 July 1983, a Korean Airways Ilyushin Il-62M on a non-scheduled international passenger flight from Pyongyang, North Korea (Pyongyang Sunan International Airport) to Conakry, Guinea (Conakry International Airport) crashed in the Fouta Djallon Mountains in Guinea. All 23 people on board died, and the aircraft was written off.[71][72]
- On 15 August 2006, Flight 152, a Tupolev Tu-154B (P-551) suffered a runway excursion while landing at Beijing Capital International Airport. Despite being officially retired in 2010, it was repainted and returned to service in 2013 and as of 2019 has been in storage.[73] Previously, in 1976, this aircraft had been taxiing when it was damaged by an Aeroflot Tu-104 that lost control and crashed during takeoff.[74]
- On 22 July 2016, Flight 151, a Tupolev Tu-204-300 on a flight from Beijing to Pyongyang, made an emergency landing at Shenyang Taoxian International Airport due to reports of smoke in the cabin. The oxygen masks were deployed.[75]
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