North Korea Wants Russia To Launch Scheduled Pyongyang Flights

Russian airlines have been invited to launch flights to North Korea in a bid to improve connections and facilitate travel between the two countries. According to a report by the Russian newspaper Kommersant, officials from the country’s Federal Air Transport Agency approached the Russian flag carrier Aeroflot and its subsidiary Aurora to discuss the possibility of operating flights to the North Korean capital, Pyongyang.

Currently, the only service between the two countries is a twice-weekly flight from Pyongyang to Vladivostok, operated by the North Korean flag-carrier Air Koryo. These flights resumed in August 2023 following the pandemic. Anecdotal reports from Kommerssant suggest that the flights are primarily used by North Korean construction workers traveling between the two countries.

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Air Koryo is currently the sole carrier at Pyongyang International Airport (FNJ), operating domestic flights to Kalma (WOS), and international services to Vladivostok (VVO) and Beijing (PEK). The latest data from ch-aviation shows that that airline has a fleet of 15 aircraft, with an average age of more than 33 years old. This includes three Ilyushin Il-62s and two Tupolev Tu-204s.

The likelihood of increased connectivity

Despite the invitation to fly to Pyongyang, the reality of flying to North Korea may not appeal to Russian airlines due to practical fleet limitations. Carriers including Aeroflot and Aurora lack narrowbody aircraft with sufficient range to fly the more than 3,400 NM between Pyongyang and the likes of Moscow and St Petersburg, and demand is unlikely to be high enough to justify the use of a widebody aircraft.

Russian carriers may therefore be more likely to funnel passengers through the already well-served city of Vladivostok, from where Pyongyang can easily be reached with an Airbus A320 or Boeing 737, rather than operating direct flights to North Korea from other Russian cities.

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Historical network data from Airline Timetable Images shows that in the 1980s, Aeroflot flew to Pyongyang from both Moscow (SVO) and Khabarovsk (KHV). Air Koryo also flew non-stop to Moscow twice per week, with one of the flights continuing on to Berlin and the other to Sofia.

Other historical routes from Pyongyang included Bangkok (BKK) and Macau (MFM), both served by Air Koryo. Air China began flying to the North Korean capital from Beijing in June 2018, but flights were halted at the start of the pandemic, and have yet to resume.

Strengthening Russia’s international connections

A stronger relationship between Russia and North Korea may well lead to raised eyebrows in the West. Yet for Russia, after having been cut off from much of the world following the war in Ukraine, the country is no doubt looking to expand its international connections where it can.

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The crippling effects of sanctions have been felt by airlines across the country, which have struggled to get hold of spare parts and maintenance services for their Airbus and Boeing aircraft. This has led carriers such as Aeroflot to place significant orders for Russian-built aircraft, reducing their dependency on Airbus and Boeing.

You might also like: A Brief History Of North Korean Flag Carrier Air Koryo

What do you make of Russian airlines being invited to fly to North Korea? Do you think any Russian carriers will begin flying between the two countries? Share your thoughts by commenting below.

Sources: Kommersant, ch-aviation, Airline Timetable Images, Routes Online