Korean Air has been making aggressive moves to expand its operation in the US, most recently by joining hands with Delta Air Lines to offer more efficient connectivity between Asia and the United States through merging the two airlines’ operations in the Pacific.

On June 23, the two Skyteam airlines sealed the joint venture agreement at a ceremony in Los Angeles.

“Korean Air has the most routes in the Asia-Pacific region, while Delta is the world’s largest airline with an extensive network in the US,” Hanjin Group and Korean Air Chairman Cho Yang-ho told reporters at the ceremony.

The ceremony was held at Wilshire Grand Center which also opened its doors last week after decades of recustruction work, standing as the tallest building in Los Angeles, California, aimed to rejuvenate the local industry and job market.

“Airlines that are part of the same alliance can share certain benefits such as mileage programs and airport lounges, but with a joint venture they can make adjustments to route schedules to expand travelers’ choices and improve accessibility to connecting flights,” a spokesman for Korean Air said.

Delta will be launching a new nonstop flight between Atlanta and Seoul, while Korean Air will be expanding its routes to Los Angeles and San Francisco. Through these increased routes, passengers will have more opportunities to connect to destinations in the Korean Air-Delta network, which includes more than 290 destinations in the Americas and 80 in Asia.

Korean Air said that the joint venture will also drive demand for transfers through Incheon Airport, which is preparing to open a second passenger terminal at the end of the year.

The agreement is subject to government approval because of anti-trust legislation. However, both airlines said they do not foresee any issues with receiving immunity because of the recent trend of forming joint ventures across the global aviation industry.

For the Asia-Pacific region, there are already existing joint ventures between ANA and United, and between Japan Airlines and American Airlines.

Delta CEO Ed Bastian told reporters that the US government had already approved the agreement’s US-bound flights, and that the airline would be seeking additional approval for the rest of the flights in the network.

By Won Ho-jung (hjwon@heraldcorp.com)