Flying Towards The Future

By Alex Scilla

Korea Air was one of the first foreign airlines to set up in Tianjin. Since last year they've brought in a new regional manager, Mr. Yo-Han Park. JIN had a talk with Mr. Park about his thoughts and experiences being in China, and being in the airline industry.

JIN LIFE: First, how about introducing yourself to our readers.

Yo-Han Park: I joined Korean Air in 1989, first working in the sales dept. in Seoul, then the sales office in Atlanta, Georgia from 1995-96. After that I studied airline operations and scheduling at the Seoul operations center and Inchon airport. I was dispatched to Tianjin for training as regional manager in summer 2004, and from January 2005 became the regional manager of Tianjin. In the last year we've had sales in the amount of $66 million, $10 million from passenger business, and $56 million cargo. I'm very proud of this accomplishment.

JIN LIFE: You've been here for a year now, what's been your experience in Tianjin ?

YHP: Just one year is a very short time. I'm still a novice in regards to the Chinese language and culture. Personally I enjoy living in Tianjin because there's lots of good food and very kind people and especially Tianjin's business environment is very good for Korean Air. Every year for the last three we've grown 20 %. It's taken a little while to get used to the climate though, especially for my son and daughter. It's a bit dry.

JIN LIFE: What do you think about the China airline industry in general ?

YHP: The speed of growth has been, and is, faster than other areas. There's been many large orders from the Chinese government for planes recently. The airports do huge volumes, with a lot of room for growth. There's some difficulty finding enough qualified employees though, such as pilots and ground staff. There have been many new domestic airlines opened recently, in Tianjin there's Xinhua Airlines, which is very powerful in the local market. These and other newly launched airlines are strong and becoming stronger, so we have to expect China to be a growth center for the world and for our company. Korea Air has already made some plans to expand our networks. We currently have 15 branches in China and 1 service center at Qingdao, flying 90 flights per week. By 2010 we'll have 30 branch offices, and are aiming for sales volume of $1 billion, compared to the present of $560. We also plan to double or triple our staff in China. I think Tianjin and the other cities of China will develop at a very high speed.

JIN LIFE: The Tianjin airport has begun renovation recently, what are your thoughts on that ?

YHP: As an international carrier, we have to focus on operational capacity. Right now the area for baggage pickup and warehouse space is very small, there are only 6 bridges in the passenger terminal. I've heard there will be 20 before the Olympics, and the plan is for the airport to be three times bigger than now, with extended runways, new terminals. The sooner the better for us.

JIN LIFE: Tianjin has a sizable Korean community, do you have any impressions ?