NEW YORK - What his country needs, according to Yang-Ho Cho, is a
"Korean Ted Kennedy."
Cho, the president of Korean Air, has made the extension of the
U.S. visa waiver program to Korea a top priority. But Cho needs
someone to get the message to the U.S. government to make it
happen, just as Sen. Kennedy made it happen for Irish citizens who
visit the U.S.
Cho said "the potential is huge" for fantastic growth - possibly
a quadrupling - in the number of Korean visitors to the U.S. if
visas are waived. For Korean Air, the issue is hotter now than
ever, given the Asian financial crisis.
The carrier has pulled out of some Southeast Asian markets and
is concentrating on the U.S., with which Korea has a strong trading
partnership. The U.S. also is home to 1.5 million Korean-Americans
who have millions more travel-loving friends and relatives in
Korea.
The travel opportunities are good in the opposite direction, as
well, Cho said. The devaluation of Korea's currency generated some
terrific bargains for Westerners.
In the shopping arena, Korea has moved beyond the designer
knock-off business and now provides "many good-quality items."
Most of all, Cho would like Seoul to be viewed as the gateway to
China - Korean Air serves Beijing, Tianjin, Qingdao, Shanghai and
Shenyang, as well as Hong Kong - but he is not alone: Tokyo, Hong
Kong, Macau and a host of other Asian hubs are vying for that
title. But he noted that Seoul, about equidistant between Beijing
and Tokyo, is considerably less congested than Tokyo's Narita
Airport.
In the meantime, Cho is addressing a major concern of U.S.
travelers: criticism of Korean Air's safety practices, notably by
Mary Schiavo, the controversial former inspector general of the
Transportation Department, in the wake of the Guam crash last
summer. The carrier is phasing out its older aircraft and has taken
delivery of 11 new aircraft in the last year. That has brought the
average age of the fleet down to 6.7 years, one of the youngest in
the world.
In addition, Korean Air has instituted a far more intensive
maintenance and safety program than is required by any regulatory
agency. And just as some airlines award employee bonuses for
on-time performance, Korean Air awards them for meeting safety
standards.