(From left) Ding Yong Zheng, board director of U-FLY Alliance; Andrew Cowen, CEO of U-Fly Alliance; Jimmy Ma, board chairman & director of U-Fly Alliance; Jung Shik Kim, CEO of Eastar Jet; and Steven Greenway, deputy CEO of U-Fly Alliance at the announcement
SOUTH Korean budget carrier Eastar Jet has joined the U-Fly Alliance as a strategic airline partner.
The addition of Eastar enables the LCC alliance to add stops such as Seoul, Busan, Jeju and more to its network of mostly North Asian destinations.
“With Eastar Jet on board, we will be able to expand U-Fly Alliance’s reach to 197 destinations and link guests up with hard-to-reach places all over South Korea and Northern Asia,” said Andrew Cowen, CEO of U-Fly Alliance.
Launched in 2009, Eastar Jet now covers a route map of 24 international and domestic destinations, all of which will be added to the U-Fly Alliance network. The company currently operates 17 aircraft with two more expected by end-2017.
“We are delighted to join the U-Fly Alliance and connect South Korean travellers with this network of exceptional LCCs. We look forward to furthering U-Fly’s mission to create a better-connected Asia and provide affordable travel for all,” said Jung Shik Kim, CEO of Eastar Jet.
The Hong Kong-headquartered U-Fly Alliance was formed earlier this year in January, marking the world’s first LCC alliance, and is made up of founding airlines Lucky Air, Urumqi Air, West Air and HK Express.
