Jin Air, T’way seek aggressive expansion in overseas route for LCC leadership

Police officials and firefighters inspect the site of a Jeju Air plane crash at Muan International Airport in South Jeolla Province, Jan. 6. Yonhap

Jin Air and T’way Air are narrowing their gap with Jeju Air — the leader of the nation’s low-cost carrier (LCC) market, as the latter continues to lose passengers following last year’s devastating plane crash accident, according to data and industry officials, Sunday.

According to data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Jeju Air maintained the top spot in passenger numbers during the first five months of the year, but the gap between the carrier and its two rivals has steadily decreased.

Jeju Air carried 6.29 million passengers from January to May, followed closely by Jin Air with 6.23 million and T’way at 6.08 million. This is a drastic turnaround from a year ago, when Jeju Air led Jin Air by more than 1.3 million passengers.

The shift is largely attributed to Jeju Air’s decision to reduce the number of flights by 24 each week between March 30 and Oct. 25 as part of its self-correction measure to improve its overall safety and regain trust from customers.

However, the void created by Jeju Air has been filled by its rivals, both of which are going all out to increase their market share and unseat Jeju Air in the nation’s hyper-competitive LCC market.

T'way Air's aircraft is seen in this undated file photo. Courtesy of T'way Air

The passenger loss has contributed to a drop in Jeju Air’s market share this year.

Jeju Air accounted for 25.2 percent of the LCC market last year. Jin Air came in second with 21.6 percent, and T’way rounded out the top three with 20 percent.

The gap, however, is rapidly decreasing. Jeju Air is on the verge of losing its leading position, with its share falling to 22.8 percent between January and May. Meanwhile, Jin Air and T’way Air rose to 22.5 percent and 22 percent, respectively, during the same period.

Speculation is mounting that either Jin Air or T’way Air may overtake Jeju Air by the end of the first half of the year.

Jin Air's B737-800 aircraft / Courtesy of Jin Air

With Jeju Air struggling, rival carriers are trying to seize the opportunity by aggressively expanding their flight routes. Jin Air recently launched a new route to Japan’s Ishigaki Island and plans to expand the number of its daily flights to Guam to three from July.

T’way Air is scheduled to launch a new flight to Vancouver starting in July.

“Jeju Air is under increasing financial burden after running a deficit in the first quarter, so there’s a growing chance it may lose its leading position to one of its rivals this year unless it quickly regains growth momentum,” said an aviation industry official.