Air Incheon has been selected as the preferred tenderer for Asiana’s cargo operations

This undated photo, courtesy of Air Incheon, shows cargo planes. Yonhap

Korean Air, Korea’s largest carrier by sales, said on Monday it has selected carrier Air Incheon as the preferred bidder for the sale of Asiana Airlines’ cargo business.

The decision on this matter was made by the national flag carrier at its board meeting on Monday.

Korean Airlines is in the process of acquiring Asiana and has so far received acquisition approval from 13 countries and regions, with the latest approval yet to come from the United States, to finalize the merger plan.

In February, the company obtained conditional consent from the European Commission (EC) for the merger. The sale of Asiana’s cargo division is among the conditions set by the European Union’s antitrust watchdog amid competition concerns over the merger.

Korean Air selected Air Incheon based on three key factors: the certainty of completing the transaction, the ability to strengthen the long-term competitiveness of the air transport industry and the ability to mobilize funds through a competent consortium, the company said in a statement.

Air Incheon, founded in 2012 and the country’s only pure-cargo carrier, is expected to increase its competitiveness by leveraging Asiana’s long-haul network to the Americas and Europe and its fleet of larger cargo aircraft, he said.

Korean Air plans to sign a “framework agreement” with Air Incheon in July, after consultations on the terms of the agreement. The agreement is subject to review by the EC. (Yonhap)