Delta and Korean Air Enter Joint Venture Partnership

Following approval from regulatory authorities in the United States and Korea, Delta Air Lines and Korean Air have announced the launch of a new joint venture partnership.

The strategic agreement between the two airlines will offer customers travel benefits across a comprehensive trans-Pacific route network that provides access to more than 290 destinations in the Americas and more than 80 in Asia.

As part of the partnership, Delta and Korean Air customers will benefit from joint growth in the trans-Pacific market, optimized schedules, a more seamless customer experience, improved loyalty program benefits, integrated IT systems, joint sales and marketing activities and co-location at key hubs.

“This is an exciting time for customers of both Delta and Korean Air as we launch our trans-Pacific partnership,” Delta CEO Ed Bastian said in a statement. “Our expanded partnership means a host of new destinations and travel options across Asia and North America, with seamless connectivity, world-class reliability, and the industry’s best customer service.”

“We are delighted to announce the launch of our partnership with Delta. This partnership will bring more comfort to customers flying between Asia and the Americas,” Korean Air CEO Yang Ho Cho said. “With the recent relocation to Terminal 2 at Incheon Airport alongside with Delta, we will be able to provide seamless service to our customers. Korean Air will provide extensive support to develop a successful partnership with Delta.”

The relationship between Delta and Korean Air has been strong for nearly 20 years, but the new joint venture builds on their previous successes together and makes for a stronger partnership in 2018 and beyond.

Delta and Korean Air are also co-located in the new Terminal 2 at Seoul’s Incheon International Airport, which helps reduce connecting times for travelers. Delta is the only U.S. carrier to offer nonstop service to three major gateways in America, including Seattle, Detroit, and Atlanta from the Korean airport, while Korean Air is the largest trans-Pacific carrier.