Korean Air Lines Boeing 747
Korean Airlines traces its lineage to Korean National Airlines, established in 1948 as the Republic of (South) Korea’s unofficial flag carrier, operating a mix of Stinson Reliants and Douglas DC-3s. Its first flight, on 30 October 1948, is today celebrated as “Air Day” in South Korea. Operations temporarily halted during the Korean War from 1950 to 1953, but it returned to the air after the war ended, with its first international routes established to Japan. (Due to the fact that the Korean War has not officially ever ended, Korean Air is forbidden from flying over North Korean or Russian airspace.) Despite resistance from the airline’s private owners, Korean National Airlines was nationalized in 1962 and renamed Korean Airlines, becoming the official national flag carrier; this situation only lasted until 1969, when it was sold to the Hanjin conglomerate. During this time period, Korean Airlines received its first turboprops (Fokker F.27 Friendships, in 1963) and its first jets (Douglas DC-9s, in 1967). Transpacific routes were introduced in 1970 with Boeing 707s, and the first wide-body airliners, 747s, were added in 1973.
Korean Airlines began to acquire an unfortunate reputation as an airline with one of the worst safety records, beginning in the mid-1970s. No less than 16 aircraft were lost, along with over 700 lives, over a period of 30 years until 1999. Several of these were due to hijackings or bombings by North Korean terrorists, but others were due to poor pilot training: most of Korean Airlines’ pilots were former Republic of Korea Air Force fighter pilots, who found the transition from high-performance fighters to airliners difficult. By far the worst accident in Korean Airlines’ history, however, was Korean Air Lines Flight 007: this flight, due to faulty navigation, strayed over Soviet airspace and was shot down by interceptors, with the loss of all 283 people aboard.
Following the downing of KAL Flight 007, there was some speculation that the Soviet fighters had confused the 747 with a US Air Force RC-135 surveillance aircraft, due to a broad similarity between Korean Airlines’ livery and the markings of USAF RC-135s. (As it was revealed in Soviet records after the end of the Cold War, this was not the case.) To ensure such confusion would not happen, and give the airline a makeover that might mitigate the fears of flying on Korean Airlines, a new livery was launched in 1984. This was completely different from the previous scheme, using light blue uppersurfaces over light gray, with the Taegeuk symbol of South Korea on the tail; the previous corporate identity of “Korean Air Lines” was dropped for large “Korean Air” titles.
After a 1999 crash of a Korean Air Cargo 747, Korean Air embarked on a revamping of its crew training as well as a modernization program. This paid dividends, as the airline has not suffered an accident since, and its aircraft are among the youngest fleet in Asia. Korean Air weathered both the 1997 Asian currency crisis and the post-9/11 airline downturn well, and today is one of the largest non-Chinese airlines in Asia, flying to all five continents. Low-cost subsidiary Jin Air was launched in 2007, while in 2013, Korean Air became the senior partner with Czech Airlines, providing aircraft and maintenance assistance in return for using Prague as a European hub. It also has diversified into prepackaged travel destinations (using hotels owned by the airline directly), and its manufacturing subsidiary, also named Korean Air, produces both licensed and indigenous aircraft, mainly for the ROKAF. Its modern fleet is very diverse, with the majority of international flights flown by Airbus A330s and Boeing 747s, and domestic routes by 737-800 variants.
This 747 shows Korean Air's older, pre-Flight 007 livery. This was a less colorful, more simple scheme with an all-white fuselage, blue cheatline, and a red, stylized aircraft as a tail logo. The Taegeuk was carried on the upper port wing and on the lower starboard wing, in the same fashion as USAF and ROKAF aircraft. HL7410 was only flown by Korean Air Lines, but unlike most of her brethren, it was preserved as a museum aircraft in Cheju, South Korea.
Korean Air Lines Boeing 747
Korean Airlines traces its lineage to Korean National Airlines, established in 1948 as the Republic of (South) Korea’s unofficial flag carrier, operating a mix of Stinson Reliants and Douglas DC-3s. Its first flight, on 30 October 1948, is today celebrated as “Air Day” in South Korea. Operations temporarily halted during the Korean War from 1950 to 1953, but it returned to the air after the war ended, with its first international routes established to Japan. (Due to the fact that the Korean War has not officially ever ended, Korean Air is forbidden from flying over North Korean or Russian airspace.) Despite resistance from the airline’s private owners, Korean National Airlines was nationalized in 1962 and renamed Korean Airlines, becoming the official national flag carrier; this situation only lasted until 1969, when it was sold to the Hanjin conglomerate. During this time period, Korean Airlines received its first turboprops (Fokker F.27 Friendships, in 1963) and its first jets (Douglas DC-9s, in 1967). Transpacific routes were introduced in 1970 with Boeing 707s, and the first wide-body airliners, 747s, were added in 1973.
Korean Airlines began to acquire an unfortunate reputation as an airline with one of the worst safety records, beginning in the mid-1970s. No less than 16 aircraft were lost, along with over 700 lives, over a period of 30 years until 1999. Several of these were due to hijackings or bombings by North Korean terrorists, but others were due to poor pilot training: most of Korean Airlines’ pilots were former Republic of Korea Air Force fighter pilots, who found the transition from high-performance fighters to airliners difficult. By far the worst accident in Korean Airlines’ history, however, was Korean Air Lines Flight 007: this flight, due to faulty navigation, strayed over Soviet airspace and was shot down by interceptors, with the loss of all 283 people aboard.
Following the downing of KAL Flight 007, there was some speculation that the Soviet fighters had confused the 747 with a US Air Force RC-135 surveillance aircraft, due to a broad similarity between Korean Airlines’ livery and the markings of USAF RC-135s. (As it was revealed in Soviet records after the end of the Cold War, this was not the case.) To ensure such confusion would not happen, and give the airline a makeover that might mitigate the fears of flying on Korean Airlines, a new livery was launched in 1984. This was completely different from the previous scheme, using light blue uppersurfaces over light gray, with the Taegeuk symbol of South Korea on the tail; the previous corporate identity of “Korean Air Lines” was dropped for large “Korean Air” titles.
After a 1999 crash of a Korean Air Cargo 747, Korean Air embarked on a revamping of its crew training as well as a modernization program. This paid dividends, as the airline has not suffered an accident since, and its aircraft are among the youngest fleet in Asia. Korean Air weathered both the 1997 Asian currency crisis and the post-9/11 airline downturn well, and today is one of the largest non-Chinese airlines in Asia, flying to all five continents. Low-cost subsidiary Jin Air was launched in 2007, while in 2013, Korean Air became the senior partner with Czech Airlines, providing aircraft and maintenance assistance in return for using Prague as a European hub. It also has diversified into prepackaged travel destinations (using hotels owned by the airline directly), and its manufacturing subsidiary, also named Korean Air, produces both licensed and indigenous aircraft, mainly for the ROKAF. Its modern fleet is very diverse, with the majority of international flights flown by Airbus A330s and Boeing 747s, and domestic routes by 737-800 variants.
This 747 shows Korean Air's older, pre-Flight 007 livery. This was a less colorful, more simple scheme with an all-white fuselage, blue cheatline, and a red, stylized aircraft as a tail logo. The Taegeuk was carried on the upper port wing and on the lower starboard wing, in the same fashion as USAF and ROKAF aircraft. HL7410 was only flown by Korean Air Lines, but unlike most of her brethren, it was preserved as a museum aircraft in Cheju, South Korea.