While British Airways was able to avoid a Christmas Day strike, it looks like Korean Air wasn’t as lucky. For the first time since 2005, Korean Air pilots have gone on strike — and they’re staying on strike until at least December 31.The union is calling for a 29% increase in pay, but the airline has only offered a 1.9% raise, saying the “pilots’ demands are nonsense.” Currently, Korean pilots average ₩150,000,000 (around $125,000) per year in compensation. But Korean Air pilots have been leaving in droves for Chinese airlines, which have been offering $208,000-$250,000 salaries to recruit them.Thankfully, the impact on flights is going to be fairly limited, as a total strike by pilots isn’t allowed under Korean law. As airlines are listed as a critical industry, the airline must be able to continue to operate at least 80% of international flights and at least 50% of domestic flights. For this strike, Korean Air reports that at least 90% of scheduled flights will continue to operate and only 150 flights have been cancelled.While the impact is going to be much greater on domestic flights, only a relatively few international flights are being cancelled by this strike. No cancellations have been announced for flights to/from the US. Here are the international flights that are currently cancelled:DateFromToFlight #Departure Time12/24, 25Seoul (ICN)Hong Kong (HKG)60113:4512/24, 25Hong Kong (HKG)Seoul (ICN)60218:0012/24, 25, 26Seoul (ICN)Tokyo (NRT)7019:0512/24, 25, 26Seoul (ICN)Tokyo (NRT)70518:4512/24, 25, 26Tokyo (NRT)Seoul (ICN)70212:5012/24, 25, 26Seoul (ICN)Osaka (KIX)72711:0512/24, 25, 26Osaka (KIX)Seoul (ICN)72814:0012/26Seoul (ICN)Riyadh/Jeddah (RUH/JED)96123:1012/24, 25, 26Tokyo (NRT)Seoul (ICN)7069:1012/24Jeddah (JED)Riyadh/Seoul (RUH/ICN)96214:0012/25Seoul (ICN)Dubai (DXB)95112:3512/25Dubai (DXB)Seoul (ICN)95223:2012/27Tokyo (NRT)Seoul (ICN)7069:1012/27,29,31Jeddah (JED)Riyadh/Seoul (RUH/ICN)96214:0012/28,30Seoul (ICN)Riyadh/Jeddah (RUH/ICN)96123:1012/30Seoul (ICN)Dubai (DXB)95112:3512/30Dubai (DXB)Seoul (ICN)95223:20Bottom LineThis strike isn’t going to affect many US-based travelers. However, the chasm in pay between what Korean Air pilots demand and what the company is offering could lead to more strikes in the future — or pilot shortages as more Korean Air pilots head to China for much higher pay.Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Are you being impacted by this strike?
