Korean Air Reintroduces 747-8i on Seoul–Atlanta Route
Korean Air has redeployed its Boeing 747-8i fleet on the nonstop service between Seoul-Incheon (ICN) and Atlanta-Hartsfield (ATL) for summer 2025, establishing the 7,172-mile flight as the world’s longest passenger-configured 747 route. The airline reclaimed the record from Lufthansa’s Frankfurt–Buenos Aires service—which spans 7,133 miles—when flight KE35 departed Incheon on April 25, 2025.
Flight KE35 lifted off at 10:26 local time aboard 747-8i HL7637, an 8.9-year-old airframe, and touched down in Atlanta at 10:06 local time after 13 hours and 47 minutes aloft. The deployment of the 747-8i on that routing underscores Korean Air’s strategy to meet peak-season demand by augmenting its Boeing 777-300ER capacity with the larger quad-jet.
The 747-8i offers 368 seats—33 percent more than the 777-300ER’s 291—across three cabins: six in first class, 48 in business, and 314 in economy. This shift increases economy cabin capacity from 82 percent to 87 percent on the route, allowing Korean Air to accommodate surging leisure and premium traffic between Asia and the southeastern United States.
Initially operating twice weekly, the Seoul–Atlanta 747-8i service will ramp up to daily departures in early May and continue through the summer season, before reverting to the 777-300ER on September 1. Eastbound flights depart Incheon at 09:15, arriving in Atlanta at 10:15 the same day. Westbound flights leave Atlanta at 12:30 and land back in Seoul at 16:50 the following day, taking full advantage of the international date line to optimize schedules.
As a SkyTeam alliance partner, Korean Air coordinates with Delta Air Lines to feed Atlanta’s extensive domestic and international network, offering seamless connections to more than 200 cities across North America, Central America, and the Caribbean. The Atlanta service complements Delta’s own operations, strengthening both airlines’ positions in the competitive transpacific market.
Only three carriers continue to operate passenger-configured Boeing 747-8s: Korean Air with six jetliners, Lufthansa with 19, and Air China with seven. Air China’s Beijing–Washington Dulles route remains the third-longest 747-8 passenger flight at 6,738 miles. These jumbos represent the final evolution of Boeing’s iconic four-engine family, even as twin-engine widebodies gain share on long-haul routes.
In addition to Atlanta, Korean Air will also operate the 747-8i on its Seoul–London Heathrow service from July 25 through October 24, 2025, before winter schedules bring back the 777-300ER. The summer deployment underscores the airline’s flexibility in matching capacity to market demand and maintaining premium offerings on flagship routes.
Despite today’s record achievement, the future of the 747-8i in Korean Air’s fleet is uncertain. As more fuel-efficient Airbus A350-900s and A350-1000s enter service, the fuel-hungry four-engine jumbos face economic challenges in a market increasingly driven by lower operating costs and environmental concerns. For now, the majestic 747-8i continues to soar on the longest route flown by a passenger 747, carrying on the legacy of the Queen of the Skies.
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