The new owner of t'way Air (TW, Daegu) says it will increase the number of B737-8s in the fleet from two now to 20 by the end of 2027 and induct five A330-900Ns on lease from Avolon next year, according to the Maeil Shinmun newspaper.
This was among several announcements made in recent days about the future of t'way Air. Daemyung Sono Group is paying KRW250 billion won (USD172 million) to acquire a controlling stake in the low-cost carrier. The seller was former majority shareholder YeaRimDang Publishing Co. Ltd. To date, 90% of the payment has been made, with the final KRW25 billion (USD17.2 million) due to be paid on March 31.
In addition to the aircraft acquisitions, Daemyung Sono Group says it will invest in safety, hire more engineers, and construct a hangar at Seoul Incheon to allow t'way Air to undertake more maintenance in-house.
If, as expected, the ownership transfer finalises at the end of the month, Daemyung Sono will appoint nine directors to t'way's board and install Lee Sang-yun as CEO. Current CEO Jeong Hong-geun has announced his resignation. t'way Air has called a meeting of shareholders on March 31 to formalise the handover and vote on procedural matters, such as the election of directors. Korea's Fair Trade Commission is yet to formally approve the takeover but is not expected to raise any objections.
t'way Air operates 38 aircraft, including five A330-200s, four A330-300s, two B737-8s, twenty-six B737-800s, and one B737-900ER. The airline flies to 44 airports in 21 countries. Once Daemyung Sono Group is safely installed in the executive offices at t'way Air, it is expected to begin pursuing a merger with Air Premia (YP, Seoul Incheon), in which it also has a shareholding.
