Incheon International Airport Corporation: "Use the Star Alliance Lounge from December"

[Financial News] Star Alliance will directly fill the lounge-service gap that could arise at Incheon International Airport following Asiana Airlines’ withdrawal from the alliance. A dedicated lounge directly branded by Star Alliance will open at Incheon International Airport in December. The move is seen as an effort to retain passengers of Star Alliance member airlines who use Incheon International Airport even after Asiana Airlines’ departure.
Incheon International Airport Corporation announced on the 8th that it had signed an MOU with Star Alliance to open a branded lounge. About 10 officials from the two organizations, including Kim Chang-gyu, chief operating officer of Incheon International Airport Corporation, and Ambar Franco, Star Alliance vice president of customer experience, attended the signing ceremony.
Kim Chang-gyu said, "By opening a dedicated Star Alliance lounge, we expect to provide passengers with stable, high-quality services even amid the major change of the two airlines’ integration." He added, "We will actively support Star Alliance member airlines in terms of operations and facilities so that they can expand their networks through Incheon International Airport as a hub."
Under the agreement, Asiana Airlines’ business lounge near Gate 42 on the fourth floor of the duty-free area in Terminal 1, Incheon International Airport, will be converted into a Star Alliance-branded lounge. Operations will begin on December 17, the date Asiana Airlines withdraws from Star Alliance.
Until now, passengers of Star Alliance member airlines have used the Asiana Airlines lounge, as the airline belongs to the same alliance. Since Asiana Airlines will leave Star Alliance following its integration with Korean Air and passengers will no longer be able to use the existing lounge, Star Alliance is establishing a dedicated lounge itself to minimize the service gap.
Unlike typical alliance lounges operated by a specific member airline, the new facility is notable because Star Alliance itself has granted it the “Star Alliance-branded lounge” designation. Star Alliance operates about 1,000 lounges worldwide in cooperation with its member airlines, but only six airports worldwide—including Paris, Los Angeles, and Rio de Janeiro—have dedicated lounges prominently bearing the Star Alliance brand. The lounge at Incheon International Airport will be the seventh.
Star Alliance’s presence at Incheon International Airport is also significant. Fourteen Star Alliance member airlines, including Asiana Airlines, currently use Incheon International Airport as a hub. Air Canada, Air India, All Nippon Airways (ANA), Ethiopian Airlines, EVA Air, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Shenzhen Airlines, Singapore Airlines, SWISS, Turkish Airlines, Thai Airways, and United Airlines operate at Incheon International Airport.
Incheon International Airport Corporation expects the new lounge to preserve the convenience of Star Alliance passengers after Asiana Airlines’ withdrawal from the alliance while strengthening Incheon International Airport’s competitiveness as a hub. Star Alliance is also said to have decided to operate the dedicated lounge after considering Incheon International Airport’s global competitiveness, including its ranking first worldwide in international passenger traffic in the first half of this year and its receipt of the highest level of Airports Council International (ACI) customer-experience certification for five consecutive years.
Founded in 1997, Star Alliance is the world’s first airline alliance. Through more than 20 member airlines, it currently operates a network connecting more than 190 countries and over 1,200 cities. For Incheon International Airport, attracting the dedicated lounge and supporting member airlines will help partially offset the weakening of the Star Alliance network that could result from Asiana Airlines’ withdrawal.
Incheon International Airport Corporation plans to support further expansion of Star Alliance member airlines’ networks based at Incheon International Airport. Its strategy is to use the lounge not only as a passenger convenience facility but also as a foundation for attracting new routes and transfer passengers at the airline-alliance level.
Ambar Franco said, "It is meaningful to establish Star Alliance’s seventh dedicated lounge at Incheon International Airport, a major gateway airport for Star Alliance member airlines." She added, "Through the newly established lounge, we plan to provide high-quality lounge services to customers of member airlines."
[email protected] Kim Dong-ho Reporter