Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd. (KAL; Korean: 주식회사 대한항공; Hanja: 株式會社 大韓航空; RR: Jusikhoesa Daehan Hanggong), operating as Korean Air, is the flag carrier of South Korea and its largest airline based on fleet size, international destinations, and international flights. It is owned by the Hanjin Group.
The present-day Korean Air traces its history to March 1, 1969, when the Hanjin group acquired government-owned Korean Air Lines, which had operated since June 1962. Korean Air is a founding member of SkyTeam alliance and SkyTeam Cargo. As of 2024, it is one of the 10 airlines ranked 5-star airline by Skytrax, and the top 20 airlines in the world in terms of passengers carried and is also one of the top-ranked international cargo airlines.
Korean Air’s international passenger division and related subsidiary cargo division together serve 126 cities in 44 countries. Its domestic division serves 13 destinations. The airline’s global headquarters is located in Seoul, South Korea. The airline had approximately 20,540 employees as of December 2014.
The airline was once known as “an industry pariah, notorious for fatal crashes” due to its poor safety record and a large number of incidents and accidents. The airline’s reputation has significantly improved in recent decades as it has focused investment on improving its safety record including by hiring consultants from Boeing and Delta Air Lines.
In November 2020, it was announced that Korean Air would seek to merge with domestic rival Asiana Airlines. The proposed merger is currently waiting the U.S. Department of Justice’s decision.