The U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority
(CMA) has approved Korean Air’s merger
with Asiana Airlines, leaving just the E.U., Japan and U.S. to
give their green light.
On 28 November 2022, the CMA announced that it accepted
remedies submitted by Korean Air, and would listen to market
opinions before approving the business combination. Then on 26
January, the CMA
notified the airline that it needed more time to
review the remedies and would extend its review until 23 March.
The CMA’s approval, officially given on 1 March,
show that the proposed
remedies submitted by the airline have resolved competition
restriction concerns.
As part of the remediation effort, Korean
Air will enter into a cooperative partnership with Virgin
Atlantic on the London Heathrow – Seoul Incheon route.
Korean Air will continue to fully cooperate with all
authorities to receive approvals at the earliest opportunity.
From January 2021, Korean Air has reported its business
combination to a total of 14 competition authorities. Eleven
countries (Australia, China, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines,
Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom and Vietnam) have either approved the combination
or have concluded the review on the grounds that the business
combination was not subject to review or report.
Korean Air, one of
the best airlines in the world, carried more than 27 million
passengers in 2019.
With its global hub at Incheon
International Airport (ICN), the airline serves 120 cities in 43
countries on five continents with a fleet of 156 aircraft
and over 19,000 employees.
The airline is a founding member of the SkyTeam
airline alliance.
