Budget airlines handle 27.7 pct of domestic air traffic

SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's four low-cost carriers handled about 5
million passengers last year, accounting for 27.7 percent of total passenger air
traffic on domestic routes, data showed Thursday.
The 2009 ratio was compared with 9.7 percent in 2008, reflecting passengers'
increased preference for budget carriers due to their low fares, according to the
data by Korea Airport Corp.
Last year, Air Busan Co. overtook Jeju Air Co. as the nation's largest budget
airline by handling 1.42 million passengers. Jeju Air came in second with 1.37
million passengers.
Jin Air Co. came in third with 1.21 million passengers, followed by Eastar Air
Co. with 990,000 passengers, according to the data.
The number of passengers served by budget carriers on the Gimpo-Jeju route jumped
to 2.72 million last year, compared 1.16 million in 2008, the data showed.
(END)