Korean Air to debut newest Boeing 787 Dreamliner on Incheon-Narita route

Korean Air is introducing new business class seats in its Boeing 787-10 flying from Incheon to Narita.

Korean Air's business class seats — referred to as Prestige Class by the airline — in the carrier's first Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner [KOREAN AIRLINES]

Korean Airlines will commence operations of its first Boeing 787-10 passenger jet with an Incheon-Narita route flight on Thursday, the airline said Monday.

The 787-10 is the largest model in the 787 Dreamliner series, which Korean Air plans to operate 10 of by 2027. The carrier says the plane has an updated design and composition that makes it more fuel efficient.

The 787-10 Dreamliner’s main body spans 68.3 meters (224 feet), longer by around five meters than the previous 787-9 model. This enables the plane to carry 15 percent more passengers and cargo, according to the airline.

Korean Air's Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner [KOREAN AIRLINES]

The plane’s fuselage has been constructed from carbon composite materials, which are lighter and more durable than the traditionally used aluminum alloys and cut down on maintenance costs. The weight reduction allows the aircraft to carry more people, burn less fuel and fly farther, according to aviation publication Simple Flying.

Its wings are equipped with raked wing tips — developed by the airline’s aerospace division — that improve takeoff and climb performance, requiring less fuel. It uses the same GEnx-1B74/75 engines from General Electric as the 787-9 model, which the airline says have chevron nozzles that reduce noise from engine exhaust.

Korean Air will also be introducing newly designed seats and larger monitors in business class, which is referred to as Prestige Class by the airline, as well as for the economy class in the new aircraft.

Coined the “Prestige Suites 2.0,” each Prestige Class seat can recline 180 degrees to transform into a bed. The seat has a width of 21 inches, while its length has been extended to 78 inches and the pitch — the distance between seats in front and behind — will be 46 inches.

The Prestige Class seats on Korean Air's Boeing 787-10 carrier can be reclined 180 degrees to a flat surface. [KOREAN AIRLINES]

The carrier’s iconic eggshell blue color used to adorn the Prestige Class seats has been replaced with a darker charcoal shade. Industry insiders see the change in color design as preparation for Korean Air’s merger with Asiana Airlines, signifying a shift in brand identity that combines the two, according to a report by The Korea Economic Daily. The color scheme for seats in economy class have also changed to a blend of red and blue. Asiana Airlines’ signature color scheme is gray and red.

The prestige class seats will have 24-inch monitors that have Bluetooth, while economy class seats will have 13-inch monitors.

The 787-10 aircraft has a shorter flight range than the preceding 787-9. It will be deployed on short haul routes first to stabilize operations before being deployed on mid- to long-haul routes such as Incheon to Vancouver, cities in the western United States and Europe.

BY KIM JU-YEON [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]