vlad.tribnet.com / Issue #165 / Business / Reading article...

It has just got a little easier to travel to South Korea from Vladivostok.

Prices are set to come down as competition intensifies between Korean Air and Vladivostok Avia and both airlines move to a scheduled service rather than charter flights.

Starting April 25, Korean Air will fly a more direct route to Seoul through North Korean airspace, cutting flight time by an hour. Vladivostok Avia has been able to fly the direct route to Seoul all along.

As a result of the shorter flight time, Korean is reducing ticket prices by 25 per cent and Vladivostok Avia says its prices will fall too. The move to scheduled services for both airlines further cuts their costs and increases reliablity for passengers.

The new arrangement illustrates the increasingly close ties between Primorye and South Korean economies.

The Korean National Tourist Office estimates that 70,000 people visited Korea from Primorye last year.

Natalia Salnikova from Korean Air’s Vladivostok office said that nearly half of the passengers flying Korean Air from Vladivostok use Seoul for connecting flights to other cities, east and west.

Salnikova said that Korean Air may increase its flight frequency even further, if the passenger demand is there.

Vladivostok Avia flies twice a week to Seoul and once a week to Pusan from Vladivostok.