Korean Air’s Premium Class Launched, But Economy Seats Are Now Tighter

Published on August 30, 2025

Korean Air has announced a caller Premium Class that will beryllium installed connected its Boeing 777-300ER fleet and will run connected routes from Incheon International Airport (ICN) to Singapore Changi Airport (SIN). The preamble of this caller class, to beryllium positioned betwixt system and business, has sparked contention regarding nan imaginable discomfort of nan system class.

With this caller service, Korean Air plans to connection amended abstraction and amenities to passengers coming from system class, but only for a interest that is astir 10% much than nan existing system fare. There is simply a interest that tourism and hose manufacture experts person voiced that nan airline’s redesign of nan system people whitethorn discuss comfortableness for nan much budget-friendly seats.

The Premium Class Concept

Korean Air is expected to rotation retired nan recently developed Premium Class connected 11 of its Boeing 777-300ERs, which will characteristic 40 seats successful a 2-4-2 (8 abreast) configuration, situated betwixt system and business class. With nan remodel, passengers are expected to use from much comfortable in-flight experiences done amended legroom, superior service, and modernized compartment interiors.

With nan preamble of nan caller Premium Class, nan system conception of nan hose has besides been modified, pinch nan seating configuration changing from a 3-3-3 seating layout to a 3-4-3 layout. This configuration increases nan number of seats disposable by 21; however, nan width of nan spot will besides trim from 18.1 inches to 17.1 inches. This poses awesome concerns for nan wide nationalist arsenic good arsenic defense groups.

Discomfort pinch nan Economy Upgrade

The system upgrade has raised nan concerns from user advocates owed to nan caller seating statement and spacing available. The seating statement of 3-4-3 is proving to beryllium much uncomfortable, particularly for large-sized passengers.

The mean assemblage size of nan hose passengers is simply a awesome constituent of concern. Citizens United for Consumer Sovereignty and galore defense groups judge that nan system people seats were upgraded without due research, hence, resulting successful uncomfortable seating for nan passengers. The accent present is particularly connected long-haul trips, airlines request to supply sufficiently freely seating.

Korean Air continues to take sides its reconfiguration rationale, saying it aligns pinch nan practices of 18 retired of nan world’s apical 25 carriers, including those operating Boeing 777-300ERs. The hose powerfully emphasizes that nan prime was made to bolster rider restitution and did not discuss information aliases work benchmarks.

Premium Class: Space and Service

According to advertizing by nan airline, Korean Air’s caller Premium Class offers 1.5 times nan abstraction of Economy Class. Other analyses, however, put nan estimate person to 1.35 aliases 1.37 times nan space. Regardless of nan increment difference, nan hose is suggesting that nan affirmative aspects of Premium Class will mitigate nan discontent associated pinch nan Economy Class reduction.

Along pinch nan reduced space, Premium Class travelers will person nan use of thinner spot cushions, updated in-flight intermezo systems, and Wi-Fi access. Premium Economy intends to supply nan hose pinch nan opportunity to position itself arsenic a bearer that offers a mid-range fare while delivering a heightened, low-cost business people recreation experience.

The caller alteration successful seating arrangements brings to ray really nan hose balances its commercialized objectives pinch rider comfort. With tighter system seating, critics reason that nan promotion of Premium Class arsenic offering importantly much abstraction could beryllium viewed arsenic an exaggeration that overlooks nan much impactful alterations brought astir by these changes.

Merger Implications and Regulatory Supervision

The layout changes being looked astatine by nan FTC, which conditionally approved Korean Air’s merger pinch Asiana Airlines successful 2022, are still nether nan South Korean Fair Trade Commission’s jurisdiction. The merger statement came pinch definite restrictions that constricted nan simplification of seating and accrued prices connected respective cardinal routes.

Moreover, nan concerns surrounding nan 3-4-3 seating statement successful nan system people are temporarily allowed nether nan existent rules arsenic agelong arsenic nan retrofitted craft are not deployed connected protected routes. The FTC has stated that it will proceed to support an oculus connected nan improvement to guarantee changes are made that will support wrong nan boundaries of nan merger agreement, which includes clauses astir non-inflationary fare restrictions and rider discomfort connected cardinal routes.

Rollout and Future Plans

Service is scheduled to commence connected nan Incheon (ICN) to Singapore (SIN) way connected September 17, 2025, aft nan recently retrofitted craft person been put into service. Korean Air tin instrumentality nan caller layout connected this way because it is not listed arsenic a protected way nether nan merger conditions.

Korean Air reconfirmed nan retrofitted craft would not run connected routes falling nether FTC jurisdiction, thereby maintaining compliance pinch regulatory restrictions. The hose intends to commencement deploying nan craft connected different routes incrementally, yet aiming to heighten nan acquisition of passengers walking connected long-haul flights while maximizing load factors.

Consumer Reaction and Airline Responsibility

The backlash complete system people seating layouts is intolerable to ignore, moreover pinch nan preamble of nan Premium Class, which seeks to adhd options for travelers that would make long-haul flights much convenient. In a increasing hose user defense environment, location is expanding unit for airlines to make abstraction for each traveler, not to mention capable space. Passengers’ comfortableness acquisition remains astatine nan bosom of nan hose manufacture service.

Currently, nan caller seating statement highlights nan challenges airlines look successful trying to amended offerings for upper-class travelers while maintaining nan comfortableness of system travelers. As Korean Air adopts nan caller aircraft, nan feedback received from passengers will beryllium captious to nan changes made. Korean Air will request to guarantee that nan equilibrium betwixt relaxation and business objectives is achieved successful nan upgrade.

The preamble of nan caller Premium Class raises concerns astir nan wide rider experience. With nan preamble of new, tighter seats and economy-class layouts, nan airline’s strategy successful achieving an equilibrium betwixt value and comfortableness will beryllium intimately scrutinized. Moving forward, nan airline’s eagerness to amended nan acquisition must beryllium balanced pinch addressing nan concerns that passengers person astir nan tight seating and layout.