Korean Air won airline of the year for 2025. Here's what it's like to travel with them.

USA Today

01-04-2025

Korean Air won airline of the year for 2025. Here's what it's like to travel with them.
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Korean Air was named Airline of the Year for 2025 by AirlineRatings.com, receiving high praise for its economy class service.
Korean Air is focused on evolving its customer experience, implementing a new corporate identity and prioritizing safety, service, and sustainability.
The airline is also dedicated to continuous improvement, using customer feedback to refine aspects like seat comfort in economy class.
SEOUL, South Korea ― Korean Airlines was named Airline of the Year for 2025 by AirlineRatings.com earlier this year, and got top marks for its economy class service.
A few weeks after the awards came out, I had a chance to fly Korean Air in business and first class as a guest of the airline, and explore its new award-winning economy class at its corporate headquarters.
And while it can be difficult for airlines to distinguish themselves in economy, where most carriers have similar seats and onboard experiences, I can see why Korean Air got the nod.
International airlines are often known for having higher quality inflight experiences than their American counterparts, and although Korean is going through a transition right now, the road ahead looks bright.
What flying Korean Air is like
Airlines will all get you from point A to point B, so at the very basic level, they all offer the same service. Still, they often set themselves apart with the little touches, and that was certainly true on Korean. My favorite thing about the experience, that let you know what airline you were flying on and set the tone for the whole cabin service experience, was that, just after the boarding door closed, the cabin crew lined up in the aisle and bowed to officially welcome us aboard.
That warm, hospitable feeling extended throughout the cabin service where flight attendants in business and first class were extremely attentive, remembering my drink order and careful not to wake me up if I requested more time to sleep during upcoming meal services.
Kenneth Chang, Korean Air's executive vice president and chief marketing officer, told me that Korean has always seen itself as a service-first airline.
'After we won, I did sit down and really thought about what changes being made in the past couple of years. I think it's paying attention to details,' he said, adding that all flight attendants go through the same training and start their careers serving the main cabin, which sets the foundation for the service across the plane. One example Chang mentioned is a sticker set Korean air offers on some flights in economy, with 'do not disturb' and 'wake for meals' options that passengers can affix to their seats
'The basis of our DNA in terms of service thinking, the mindset is always going to be the same for everyone,' Chang said.
Of course, business and first class passengers benefit from even more elevated service, with more personal touches and nicer amenities. In fact, Korean Air recently overhauled its amenity kits and menus as part of its new corporate identity. On my flight home from Seoul in first class, which featured the new service, I dined on a multi-course feast that included so much food I had to skip the second meal altogether. Still, my octopus over rice was amazing and an open-face smoked salmon sandwich right before landing was a great way to start my day back in New York.
How Korean is planning to evolve
Korean isn't prepared to rest on its laurels, even with the new accolades. In addition to the new livery it unveiled in March, the airline rolled out a whole new corporate identity, 'the KE Way.'
According to Chang, it's a value statement for the airline's future, as it prepares to merge with Asiana, another major Korean carrier.
'We're just very proud of what the future of Korean Air looks like,' he said. The airline plans to redouble its focuses on safety, customer service and sustainability.
Cruising Altitude: What Korean Air's new livery says about the airline
As one example, Chang said, the airline tweaked the meal service on some of its shorter flights, moving from hot food to pre-prepared meals on some inter-Asia services, so that passengers and crews wouldn't feel as rushed.
While that may sound like a step back, Chang said customer satisfaction scores actually improved after the change, because flight attendants were able to interact with customers more personally when they had easier-to-serve meals.
Korean Air economy class
Although I didn't sit in economy class on either of my Korean Air flights, I did have a chance to test out the seats and cabin on one of the airline's newest planes, and I can see why it's award-winning.
The seats themselves are spacious – Korean prides itself on having the most legroom among its competitors – and the service plan seemed on-par for other major international carriers.
Chang said Korean put more thought than ever into its latest generation economy seats, and has been tweaking the design now that it's in service in response to customer feedback.
'I actually went and I took a trip to Vancouver sitting in 57D,' Chang said, to evaluate some comments about seat padding himself on the nearly 10-hour flight. The result: he agreed with customers that the economy seats on Korean's newest planes were too firm, and the airline re-engineered them to be more comfortable as more get added to the fleet. He acknowledged it will take time to retrofit seats that are already flying.
'It's everyone's job to come up with ways to improve,' he said.
The reporter on this story received access from Korean Air. USA TODAY maintains editorial control of content.
Zach Wichter is a travel reporter and writes the Cruising Altitude column for USA TODAY. He is based in New York and you can reach him at [e-mail].