Yonhap News TV

Integrated aviation with only 30 trillion in debt However, “No restructuring”
[뉴스리뷰] [앵커]

Korean Air’s acquisition of Asiana Airlines has begun to accelerate as Hanjin Kal has issued new shares that will be acquired by the Korea Development Bank as planned.

The question is whether an integrated airline with only 30 trillion won in debt can weather the crisis without restructuring or raising rates, but Korean Air said it could.

This is the reporter Jisoo Kim.

The biggest concern that arises after the integration of Korean Air and Asiana Airlines is whether it is possible to normalize without restructuring the redundant staff.

This is because the debt of the two companies alone is around 30 trillion won, and many employees are taking paid or unpaid vacation due to the krona crisis and it is expected to take more than 3 or 4 years for demand to recover. in the aviation sector.

Korean Air reiterated that there is no artificial restructuring.

“More than 95% of the direct sector workforce. Although integrated, there is no plan to reduce supply, so the demand for the direct sector workforce remains the same …”

At the same time, when the two airlines’ competing routes are combined, flight schedules can be streamlined and Korean Air can also reduce costs as Asiana Airlines, which was in charge of the foreign companies, can be retained.

But the situation is not that easy.

The debt-to-GDP ratio of 2,300% of Asiana Airlines’ debts to be paid off within a year amounts to KRW 2 trillion and Korean Air also reaches KRW 1 trillion.

“If you do a capital increase, your debt-to-GDP ratio will decrease, so you can think about additional bonds or loans …”

There is also a criticism for finding the total number of chaebols.

Despite Hanjin Kal’s court approval of the capital increase, the issue of the violation of shareholder rights continues and some point out that the increase should be delayed until next year.

The fact that foreign competition authorities allow the acquisition is also a variable, and Korean Air plans to file a business combination statement with countries, including the United States, by 14th next month.

This is Yonhap News TV, Kim Ji-soo.

Yonhap News TV article inquiries and reports: katok / line jebo23

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