SkyTeam carrier Korean Air hopes to complete its drawn-out acquisition of Asiana Airlines in December after satisfying remedies laid out to secure European Commission approval for the deal.
The Commission had in February backed the tie-up between the two Korean carriers, conditional on “full compliance” with remedies offered by Korean Air to address competition concerns – namely selling Asiana’s freighter activities, and providing access to rival T’Way Air on passenger routes.
Korean Air says the Commission has concluded its review after confirming the airline’s fulfilment of all required conditions for the merger with Asiana. Korean struck a deal to sell Asiana’s cargo business to Air Incheon, while it is providing support for T’way’s launch of flights from Seoul to Barcelona, Frankfurt, Paris and Rome.
It comes four years after the airline first announced plans to acquire its Korean rival in the aftermath of the pandemic. While the acquisition gained approvals from several regulators, including those in Singapore, the UK and China, it has faltered in major jurisdictions such as the European Union, USA and Japan.
Notably European regulators had opposed the merger in May 2023 citing concerns it would reduce competition on passenger routes between South Korea and France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. as well as in the cargo sector.
”Korean Air has submitted the European Commission’s final approval to the US Department of Justice and plans to complete the transaction by December 2024,” the company says following confirmation of European approval.
