Air Busan Co., Ltd., operating as Air Busan is a low-cost airline based in Busanjin-gu, Busan, South Korea. It is a subsidiary of Asiana Airlines. The airline began its operation in 2007 as Busan International Airlines Company ; it launched service in October 2008. Air Busan is South Korea's third-largest low-cost airline, carrying 4.5 million domestic and 3.6 million international passengers in 2018. Air Busan has grown international passenger traffic by 122% over the past three years, while domestic traffic has grown by 38%. As a result of merger with Korean Air, the airline, as well as parent company Air Seoul will be integrated with Jin Air, Korean Air's subsidiary.

History

Busan International Airlines Co., Ltd. was established in August 2007. In February the following year, the corporate name was changed to Air Busan Co., Ltd. and an investment agreement was signed by the city of Busan and Asiana Airlines. In April 2008 the company ordered its first aircraft, five Boeing 737s. Two months later, the company was granted a license for regular air transportation. In October 2008, bases were established at Gimpo airport and Jeju international airport and the airline commenced operations between Busan and Gimpo. In April 2009, the airline took delivery of its fifth Boeing 737-400 aircraft. By August that year, Air Busan had marked 10,000 flights in the 299 days since it began operations. In September 2009, the number of passengers carried reached 1 million. International services, between Busan and Fukuoka, began in March 2010 and in April the number of passengers carried reached 2 million. In January 2011 Air Busan took delivery of its first Airbus A321-200 aircraft. In 2018, Air Busan applied for a preliminary screening for an initial public offering. In 2021, Korean Air's Post Merger Instruction plan for Asiana Airlines was approved by the Korea Development Bank. It includes provisions to merge Air Busan with Korean Air's low cost carrier subsidiary, Jin Air. Air Busan will exclusively use the expanded international terminal at Gimhae International Airport, which will be operational from 26 March 2024.

Destinations

Air Busan started operations in October 2008, using Gimhae International Airport as a base. , Air Busan flies (or has flown) to the following destinations:

Codeshare agreements

Air Busan has codeshares with the following airlines (as of May 2014):

Fleet

Current fleet

, Air Busan operates an all-Airbus A320 family fleet composed of the following aircraft:

Retired fleet

Air Busan formerly also operated the following aircraft types: