News

Korean Air and Royal Brunei launch new codeshare

4 Sep 2019 by Michael Allen
Royal Brunei A320 NEO - photo courtesy of Royal Brunei Airlines

Korean Air and Royal Brunei Airlines have launched a new codeshare partnership for flights between the South Korean capital Seoul and Brunei’s capital Bandar Seri Begawan.

Through the new agreement, Korean Air will sell seats on the Incheon-Brunei route of Royal Brunei Airlines under its flight number as a marketing carrier, without directly launching the route. The Incheon-Brunei route is operated four times a week (Tuesday/Thursday/Friday/Sunday).

The route is operated by Royal Brunei’s Airbus A320 and A320neo aircraft. A Korean Air spokesperson told Business Traveller Asia-Pacific that the type of aircraft deployed on the route is “equally distributed between A320 and A320neo”.

Royal Brunei’s A320 and A320neo have the same seating configuration: 12 business class seats, 18 economy class “preferred seats” and 120 standard economy class seats.

The business class seats on the A320 have a pitch of 42 inches and a seat width of 22.7 inches, as well as a 10 inch recline. The in-seat IFE screen is 10.4 inches.

Business class seats on the A320neo have different dimensions, including 43 inches of pitch, 20.9 inches of width and a 10 inch recline. The IFE screen, at 11.6 inches, is bigger than on the A320.

As for economy class passengers, on the A320 they get 30 to 32 inches of pitch, 17.1 inches of width and 4.5 to 6 inches of recline. There is no IFE screen.

On the A320neo, economy class passengers can enjoy a slightly upgraded experience. The seat pitch and recline is the same as on the A320, but the width is slightly more at 18.1 inches, and they get a 10.1 inch IFE screen with USB charging capability.

A Royal Brunei spokesperson provided some photos of the A320neo products on this route, though not of the A320 products.

“We are no longer promoting the A320 CEO, therefore, photos are not available,” the spokesperson said.

The cover photo of this article is the business class seat on the A320neo.

Here is another photo showing the same seat.

Royal Brunei A320 NEO - photo courtesy of Royal Brunei Airlines

And here is the meal service on that same product

Royal Brunei A320 NEO - photo courtesy of Royal Brunei Airlines

Here is the economy class cabin during meal service.

Royal Brunei A320 NEO - photo courtesy of Royal Brunei Airlines

And a close-up shot of one of the economy class meals.

Royal Brunei A320 NEO - photo courtesy of Royal Brunei Airlines

Passengers booking the flight through Korean Air can accrue miles on its frequent flyer program, Skypass.

Flight No. Depart Arrive Departure time Arrival time Operation days
BI651 / KE5652 Brunei (BWN) Seoul (ICN) 00:25 06:50 Tuesday & Thursday
BI 652 / KE5651 Seoul (ICN) Brunei (BWN) 12:35 16:55 Tuesday & Thursday
BI651 / KE5652 Brunei (BWN) Seoul (ICN) 15:10 21:35 Friday & Sunday
BI 652 / KE5651 Seoul (ICN) Brunei (BWN) 22:35 02:55 Friday & Sunday

Korean Air currently has codeshare arrangements with 35 airlines, including Skyteam members such as Delta Air Lines and Air France, on a total of 950 routes. Through the continuous expansion of codeshare agreements, Korean Air will keep providing more convenient, diverse schedules and options to customers.

Royal Brunei currently operates a fleet of fourteen aircraft comprising of five Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft together with seven Airbus A320neo aircraft and two Airbus A320ceo aircraft, with an average fleet age of two years.

flyroyalbrunei.com / koreanair.com

Loading comments...

Search Flight

See a whole year of Reward Seat Availability on one page at SeatSpy.com

Business Traveller March 2024 edition
Business Traveller March 2024 edition
Be up-to-date
Magazine Subscription
To see our latest subscription offers for Business Traveller editions worldwide, click on the Subscribe & Save link below
Polls