Korean Air vs Asiana: Which to Book Before Asiana Disappears

Pick Korean Air for almost every trip. Asiana is legally dissolved into Korean Air on December 17, 2026, Korean Air already flies to every US city Asiana does, and Star Alliance partners stopped giving miles for Asiana flights after October 15.

Pick Asiana only for a trip that ends by December 16, and only if you collect Asiana Club miles or want two free checked bags on the cheapest economy fare. For travel on or after December 17 there is no choice to make: every Asiana booking is moved onto a Korean Air flight number.

This comparison uses both airlines’ own fleet and baggage pages, South Korea’s 2025 government airline ratings, Skytrax, and the merger and miles rulings, as of October 2026. If you are weighing Japan’s two big carriers instead, see our ANA vs JAL comparison.

What happens to Asiana on December 17, 2026

Korean Air bought 63.88% of Asiana on December 12, 2024, making it a subsidiary. For two years the airlines kept flying separately, with separate alliances, separate frequent flyer programs and separate flight codes.

That ends on December 17, 2026. Asiana’s shareholders and Korean Air’s board approved the merger in August, and a Korean Air spokesman told Executive Traveller that “on this date, Asiana Airlines will legally become a dissolved company.” We covered the vote in our news report on the final approval.

Your booking moves automatically. Between November 2 and December 3, Korean Air is re-issuing every Asiana booking for flights on or after December 17 under its own KE flight numbers, Korea JoongAng Daily reported.

The Asiana name will not vanish from the planes overnight. Korean Air says the brand will be retired “progressively,” and the repaint into Korean Air colors “will follow a phased schedule.”

Edge: Korean Air. It is the airline that exists after December 17, so any ticket you buy for later travel ends up with it anyway.

Alliance and airline miles

Korean Air is a member of SkyTeam, the alliance Delta belongs to. Asiana has been in Star Alliance with United and Air Canada, but leaves at 11:59 p.m. Seoul time on December 16, 2026.

The exit has already started for frequent flyers. Star Alliance says miles can be earned only on Asiana-operated flights departing on or before October 15, 2026, so an Asiana flight today earns nothing in a partner program such as Aeroplan.

Star Alliance award tickets on Asiana stay valid for travel completed by December 16, and Gold and Silver status benefits run to the same date. Aeroplan says Asiana will not honor its award tickets for later dates, and the points are put back with taxes refunded.

Edge: Korean Air. Its flights still earn partner miles, and Asiana’s Star Alliance earning has already stopped.

What happens to Asiana Club miles

Korea’s Fair Trade Commission approved the miles plan on September 15, 2026, after rejecting an earlier version in June 2025. Asiana miles earned by flying convert into Korean Air SKYPASS miles 1 to 1.

Miles earned from partners, including co-branded credit cards, convert at 0.82 SKYPASS miles per Asiana mile. That is an 18% cut: a 50,000-mile balance earned on a card becomes 41,000 SKYPASS miles.

You do not have to convert. Asiana miles can be kept separately and used under Asiana’s current terms for 10 years, and whatever is left after that converts automatically at the same ratios.

The regulator also tied Korean Air to award seats. For 10 years it must keep long-haul award seat availability to the Americas, Europe and Oceania at or above 2023 levels, the highest of the past decade, The Korea Herald reported.

Asiana’s five elite tiers map onto Korean Air tiers, with a new tier created for Asiana’s third and fourth levels. Korean Air is opening an online tool before the merger that shows how many miles and which tier each member would get.

Edge: Korean Air. SKYPASS miles stay as they are, while card-earned Asiana miles lose 18% the day you convert them.

US routes and fleet

Korean Air flies nonstop from Seoul Incheon to 11 US cities: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Honolulu, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York JFK, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington Dulles.

Asiana flies to 4: Los Angeles, New York JFK, San Francisco and Honolulu. Korean Air serves all four, so Asiana does not offer a single US city you cannot already reach on Korean Air.

The handover is already under way. Asiana’s Seattle flights became Korean Air flights on October 12, AeroRoutes reported, and Asiana’s Honolulu flights are not on sale for travel on or after December 18, while Korean Air’s Honolulu service rises to 14 a week from December 7.

Korean Air is roughly twice Asiana’s size. Korea’s transport ministry counted 165 Korean Air aircraft and 83 Asiana aircraft at the end of 2024, freighters included, and Asiana has since sold its cargo business.

Asiana’s own fleet page now lists 66 passenger jets.

Schedules filed for December 17 show what happens to that fleet. On Los Angeles and New York, one of Asiana’s two daily flights switches to a Korean Air A380 or 777-300ER, while the other stays on an Asiana jet; San Francisco moves from Asiana’s A350-900 to a Korean Air 787-10.

Edge: Korean Air. Seven US cities are Korean Air only, and none are Asiana only.

Seats and cabins

Both airlines hold the Skytrax 5-Star rating, one of 10 airlines in the world to have it in 2026. At the 2026 Skytrax World Airline Awards, Korean Air placed No. 10 in the world and won World’s Best Economy Class Seat.

Korean Air’s 777-300ERs seat economy 3-3-3 with 33 inches of pitch. In 2025 it planned to squeeze 11 of them to 10 across, then scrapped that for all but the one jet already converted after Korea’s Fair Trade Commission warned that tighter seats could breach the merger conditions, One Mile at a Time reported.

Those 11 jets are also getting Korean Air’s first premium economy cabin, about 20 to 25 seats per aircraft, in place of first class, according to chairman Walter Cho.

Asiana’s fleet page gives no seat dimensions and tells passengers to check the seat type for each flight. Both airlines also still fly the A380, which Korean Air had planned to retire by the end of 2025 before late aircraft deliveries kept it flying, as our list of airlines still flying the A380 tracks.

Edge: Korean Air. It holds the 2026 Skytrax award for best economy seat and is the one adding premium economy.

Checked bags

Asiana gives economy passengers on US routes two free checked bags of up to 50 pounds (23 kg) each, and business class two bags of up to 70 pounds (32 kg). Each bag can be up to 62 inches (158 cm) in total dimensions.

Korean Air matches that on standard economy fares, but its cheapest Saver economy fares on Americas routes include one free bag, with a second bag at $200, Upgraded Points reported in June 2026.

Edge: Asiana. On the cheapest economy fare it includes one more free bag, until its last flights on December 16.

On-time record and safety

South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport grades every Korean airline each year. In its evaluation of 2025, published in April 2026, Korean Air scored B++ for international on-time reliability and Asiana B+, The Korea Times reported.

Both airlines received the top safety grade, A+++, which covers accident records and safety management. Korean Air also ranked first for passenger satisfaction in the ministry’s survey of more than 31,000 travelers.

Edge: Korean Air. It is one grade better on punctuality and level on safety.

Airport and lounges in Seoul

Both airlines now use Incheon Airport’s Terminal 2. Korean Air has been there since the terminal opened in January 2018, and Asiana moved all its flights over from Terminal 1 on January 14, 2026, Korea JoongAng Daily reported.

Korean Air is expanding its Terminal 2 business and first class lounges from 898 seats to 1,566, Executive Traveller reported.

Edge: Even. Same terminal, and the lounges are being combined.

Who should pick which

For most US travelers the choice is already made. Korean Air flies more US routes, rates as well as or better than Asiana on every government and Skytrax measure, and is the airline Asiana becomes in December.

If you are comparing Korean Air with other carriers for a premium trip, start with our ranking of the best business class airlines.