Asiana posts record high totals in Dec.

The number of passengers brought into the CNMI by Asiana Airlines reached a high of 8,071 in December 2005, posting a 22-percent growth compared with passenger arrivals in December 2004.

Asiana’s general manager for Saipan, Kwang Joong Kim, said travel demand to Saipan increased in Korea following the development of golf packages to the islands. Asiana has also begun tapping the Russian, Chinese and Japanese markets through flights via Seoul.

The number of passengers who came to Saipan in December 2004 via Asiana Airlines only totaled 6,639, according to Kim.

“December performance was very nice,” Kim said. “Basically, [travel] demand increased.”

After upgrading its aircraft for its daily flights to Saipan, Asiana Airlines added three more flights to the island beginning Dec. 23, 2005. The new additional flights would ferry passengers to Saipan until March 1, but Kim added that the service might continue depending on travel demand.

The new flights, which use Airbus 321 aircraft that have seat capacities of 177, arrive on Saipan every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 2:50am. They augment the one flight daily from Seoul to Saipan via Asiana’s Boeing 777 that has a seat capacity of 310.

Asiana upgraded its aircraft since September from the 260-seat Boeing 767. Together with the three additional flights, total seat capacity reaches close to 11,000 monthly, with Asiana increasing the number of incoming flights to 10 weekly.

POI Aviation operations manager Leo T. Duenas said Asiana also brought in two extra flights on Dec. 24 and 27, 2005. POI Aviation provides ground-handling services for Asiana’s flights.

While travel to the CNMI declined tremendously following Japan Airlines’ pullout, Marianas Visitors Authority statistics show that the Korean market achieved a 38-percent growth in November, with some 6,503 visitors coming to the islands, almost a couple thousand greater than November 2004’s 4,723 Korean tourists.

Asiana is developing the Chinese and Russian markets through flights via Inchon International Airport. Last November, Kim said Asiana, along with the MVA and the Hotel Association of the Northern Marianas, supported destination study on Saipan by tour agents from 17 major cities in China.

Kim said tour agents from Almaty and Khabarovsk in Russia have also toured Saipan. At least 81 Russians visited the CNMI last November, based on MVA statistics.

Kim said Asiana has invited travel agents from another Russian city, Sakhalinsk, this January. He said travel agents from that city, which has cold weather all-year-round, has already promised to visit the CNMI to inspect the destination.

Kim said Asiana has also begun bringing in tourists from four Japanese cities—Sendai, Fukushima, Toyama, and Kumamoto—since early December. Japanese visitors also come to Saipan via Asiana flights to Seoul.