Following the arrival of the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft in Seoul, South Korea, on February 13, 2022, South Korea’s flag carrier Korean Air has announced the date when it would begin conducting passenger flights using the plane.
Korean Air revealed to the public on February 14, 2022, that it will begin operating its first Boeing 737 MAX 8 plane in March 2022.
The 2.8-year-old jet, registration HL8348, was moved from its storage site at Narita International Airport (NRT) in Japan to Gimpo International Airport (GMP) in South Korea a day before the announcement, according to Flightradar24.com data.
“We will put all efforts for its safe operation under the supervision of the Transport Ministry. Our safety and security office will serve as a comprehensive control tower for the plane’s safe operation,” a Korean Air spokesperson told The Korea Herald.
The Seoul-based carrier presently operates a single MAX plane but wants to increase its MAX fleet to 29 aircraft by 2028.
Since November 2015, Korean Air has had 30 Boeing 737 MAX planes on order.
The jets’ delivery has been delayed due to the global grounding of the jet after 346 people died in two deadly crashes: Lion Air flight 610 in October 2018 and Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 in March 2019.
