Eastar Jet’s foreign passenger numbers on international flights from Busan soar 2.7-fold this year

[Financial News] The number of foreign passengers on Eastar Jet’s international flights from Busan has risen by more than 170% so far this year. The increase is thought to reflect the airline’s expansion of international routes from Busan alongside efforts to attract foreign tourists in cooperation with relevant organizations.
Eastar Jet said on the 4th that the number of foreign passengers on its international flights from Busan rose 171% in January–October this year compared with the same period a year earlier. In particular, foreign passengers accounted for 89% of passengers on the Busan–Taipei route and 74% on the Busan–Hong Kong route.
Over the same period, total passenger numbers on international flights from Busan rose 193% year over year. The average load factor also increased by 8.2 percentage points.
After expanding its international routes from Busan from six in 2024 to 11 last year, Eastar Jet launched new services this year to destinations including Almaty, Hong Kong and Xiamen, and now operates 14 routes.
Eastar Jet is also stepping up cooperation with relevant organizations to attract foreign tourists. On Oct. 26, to mark the launch of its Busan–Hong Kong route, it held a welcome event at Gimhae International Airport with the Busan Tourism Organization and others for passengers on the first flight from Hong Kong to Busan. It is also working with Korea Airports Corporation on joint advertising to promote tourism in Busan to foreign tourists.
Eastar Jet plans to further expand its international flights from Busan, focusing on routes to China. In April, it secured traffic rights from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport for four routes, including Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou and Xiamen. After launching its Xiamen service in October, it plans to begin a new service to Hangzhou this coming December.
An Eastar Jet official said, “The launch of our Busan–Shanghai and Busan–Beijing routes is also scheduled for early next year. We will continue to strengthen joint marketing with relevant organizations, including the Busan Tourism Organization, Korea Tourism Organization and Korea Airports Corporation, to boost our Busan routes and work to attract foreign passengers.”
[email protected] Jung Won-il Reporter