Data analyzed by Democratic Party lawmaker Jeon Yong-gi

25 pet transport incidents recorded over 5 years, a rate of 0.03%

Not directly related to this article. [Image generated by AI]
Not directly related to this article. [Image generated by AI]

Twenty-five incidents involving pets transported in Korean Air cargo holds — including deaths and damaged cages — were recorded over the past five years, according to data released Tuesday. The incident rate stood at just 0.03 percent of total transport cases.

The figures, obtained by Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Jeon Yong-gi of the National Assembly's Land and Infrastructure Committee from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Korea Aviation Association, show that Korean Air recorded 25 pet transport accidents from 2022 through September this year, covering both checked baggage compartments on passenger aircraft and separate air cargo on freighters.

Of those, eight were deaths from undetermined causes, while the remaining 17 involved cages damaged during flight.

The routes on which pets died were Dallas (two cases), Washington, D.C., Vancouver, Ho Chi Minh City (two cases), Guangzhou and Jeju Island.

Over the same period, Korean Air transported a total of 72,091 pets across international and domestic routes, combining checked baggage and separate air cargo. The 0.03 percent incident rate makes it difficult to characterize the risk as high.

Korean Air's pet transport volume dwarfs that of other domestic carriers.

Over the same period, Asiana Airlines handled 28,752 pet transport cases and Air Busan handled 4,727. Air Busan suspended cargo transport this year.

However, calls are growing for fundamental solutions, with some pushing back against an outright ban on cargo transport, noting that demand for air transport of pets has been rising steadily.

The number of pets transported in the cabins of domestic airlines — excluding Air Premia — on both international and domestic routes has approached 150,000 cases annually in recent years: 121,544 in 2022, 140,244 in 2023, 147,277 in 2024, 147,262 in 2025, and 100,426 through the end of August this year.

Public attention to the issue surged after the death of a Chinese passenger's golden retriever aboard Korean Air flight KE868, which departed Guangzhou, China, and arrived at Incheon International Airport on Sept. 3, became widely known through online communities.

The Chinese owner posted on social media saying she wanted to know what had happened to her dog and requested that Korean Air provide closed-circuit television footage, records of the entire transport, unloading and handover process, and the duty logs of the staff involved — but said the airline refused.

As the controversy grew, Korean Air issued an official statement saying that when the doors of flight KE868 were opened after arriving in Incheon from Guangzhou, "the dog was unfortunately found already dead inside its cage." The airline added that other pets had also been on board, that the cabin environment required for pet transport had been maintained without issue, and that no other animals showed any health problems.

Korean Air allows pets to be brought into the cabin if the combined weight of the animal and its carrier is 7 kilograms or less. Heavier pets may only be transported in the cargo hold if the combined weight does not exceed 45 kilograms.


jshan@heraldcorp.com