South Korean budget airline Jin Air has pushed back the start dates of about 50 new cabin crew hires as soaring fuel prices driven by the Middle East conflict squeeze the industry.
Jin Air delayed onboarding for the newly hired cabin crew members to late September or early October, according to Yonhap News Agency on Tuesday.
The airline hired about 100 new flight attendants in its first-half recruitment round. Roughly half had already begun training, while the rest, scheduled to start work on June 11, were affected by the delay.
An airline official stressed the move was a delay, not a cancellation of hiring, as the company has shifted into emergency management mode following the sharp rise in global oil prices. The company had earlier suspended annual safety incentive payments for employees as part of cost-cutting measures.
Jin Air has reduced 176 round-trip international flights through the end of this month. The carrier cut 45 flights on eight routes in May, including flights to Guam, followed by another 131 flights on 14 routes this month, including services to Phu Quoc. Additional flight cuts are expected once the airline finalizes its June flight schedule.
Other budget airlines are also grappling with rising fuel costs and weakening travel demand, as higher fuel surcharges weigh on summer travel.
Jeju Air, Korea's biggest budget carrier, has been accepting applications for unpaid leave from its cabin crew members for June since Friday.
T'way introduced a two-month unpaid leave program for flight attendants from May through June, while Aero K Airlines accepted voluntary unpaid leave applications from all employees throughout May.
junheee@heraldcorp.com
![[Exclusive] Ateez to return in November](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/09/02/news-p.v1.20260902.76162fb0ba55493aad1c076f240d0750_R.jpg?type=h&h=120)