Safety investment plan for this year: 17.4 trillion won

Parata Air tops investment per 10,000 flights

The apron at Terminal 2 of Incheon International Airport on Tuesday. [Yonhap]
The apron at Terminal 2 of Incheon International Airport on Tuesday. [Yonhap]

South Korea's aviation industry invested a total of 13.31 trillion won ($9.69 billion) in safety last year, according to government data released Wednesday. The sharp increase was driven largely by the expansion of what counts as a safety investment, with the costs of acquiring new aircraft and hiring safety personnel included in the tally for the first time.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport released Wednesday an analysis of the "2025 Aviation Safety Investment Performance and 2026–2027 Investment Plans" covering 17 domestic airlines as well as Incheon International Airport Corporation and Korea Airports Corporation.

Last year's safety investment jumped 115.5 percent from the previous year's 6.18 trillion won. The inclusion of new aircraft acquisition costs and hiring expenses for flight and cabin crew in the safety investment category accounts for much of the increase. In detail, 3.88 trillion won went toward acquiring 43 new aircraft, while 3.38 trillion won was spent on hiring safety-related personnel. As fleet renewal progressed, the average age of aircraft operated by domestic carriers fell from 12.4 years in 2024 to 12.1 years last year.

Excluding new aircraft acquisition costs, core safety investment stood at 9.04 trillion won, up 69.3 percent from the prior year's 5.34 trillion won. By category, 3.38 trillion won went to maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO); 1.88 trillion won to engine and parts purchases and leases; and 225 billion won to expanding maintenance facilities and equipment.

Full-service carriers dominated the spending. Korean Air invested 7.22 trillion won and Asiana Airlines 1.88 trillion won, with the two airlines together accounting for 68.4 percent of the industry total.

Among low-cost carriers, Trinity Airways led with 990.6 billion won, followed by Jeju Air at 977.5 billion won, Eastar Jet at 559 billion won and Jin Air at 407.9 billion won.

Investment efficiency metrics also varied across carriers. Investment per 10,000 flights was highest at Parata Air at 793.2 billion won, followed by Air Premia at 553.2 billion won and Korean Air at 490.7 billion won. On a per-aircraft basis, Korean Air led with 43.2 billion won, ahead of Eastar Jet at 27.9 billion won and Asiana Airlines at 27.5 billion won.

The industry plans to make a record 17.45 trillion won in safety investments this year, including 7.07 trillion won for the acquisition of 60 new aircraft. Next year, however, overall investment is expected to ease somewhat, with the number of planned new aircraft deliveries falling to 28 as carriers adjust for overlapping expenditures arising from the merger process between major full-service carriers.

Yoo Kyung-su, the ministry's director general for aviation safety policy, said the government would continue to support efforts to embed a safety management culture across the industry — one that treats safety investment not as a simple cost but as the foundation for long-term competitiveness and growth.


hwshin@heraldcorp.com