Officials at Jeju Air (7C, Jeju) have denied the carrier is under financial pressure following the December 29, 2024 crash of one of its B737-800s and a resulting surge in ticket cancellations.

Song Kyung-hoon, head of Jeju Air’s management support division, told journalists last week that there were 68,000 cancellations in the 48 hours following the crash at Muan Airport that killed 179 people. He said new bookings were coming in, albeit at a reduced rate, and the airline was promptly paying out refund requests. Song said Jeju's ongoing investment plans, which include aircraft acquisitions, were expected to "proceed without delay."

However, The Korea Herald reported industry insiders as saying that the low-cost carrier is likely to experience significant short-term financial pressure because ticket revenue had suddenly slowed. Citing recent regulatory filings, the newspaper says Jeju Air’s advance ticket revenue was around KRW260.6 billion won (USD179 million) at the time of the crash, but a large percentage of that may be refunded to customers. Jeju Air's fleet of forty Boeing narrowbodies fly to 56 airports in 16 countries.

As of September 30, 2024, the airline was holding onto KRW391.5 billion (USD269 million) in assets, including KRW181 billion (USD124 million) in cash or cash equivalents. At the same time, Jeju Air's filing also revealed liabilities of KRW993.7 billion (USD682 million) and a working capital ratio of 0.39, below what is considered financially healthy. The carrier also must repay KRW242.1 billion (USD165 million) in short-term borrowings in the 12 months to September 30, 2025, although it is widely expected to renegotiate repayment terms. Song says it will pay out the refunds using cash on hand.

Meanwhile, search operations have wrapped up but Muan remains closed until at least January 14, 2025. Officials have declared the regional airport a special disaster zone. According to ch-aviation PRO airports data, Muan normally handles around 10,000 passengers per week and more than 50 scheduled flights. Jeju Air is the second largest operator there after Jin Air (LJ, Jeju).