Flights from Wroclaw to Seoul start in three months.
From 3rd November, we will have a regular flight from Wroclaw to Seoul. This means the first intercontinental route to be operated from Wroclaw Airport. The distance to be covered by the plane will exceed 8,000 km.
It is a very important business connection for the capital of Lower Silesia.
‘Wroclaw is the biggest shareholder of the airport and we are beyond happy that this connection has been launched. This is very promising. We must remember that LG Energy Solution alone had a profit of 9 billion last year. It is a very significant part of export and a very significant part of the economic chain that takes place in the Wroclaw agglomeration and is also very important for Lower Silesia,’ says Jakub Mazur, Deputy Mayor of Wroclaw.
The geopolitical location of the Wroclaw agglomeration requires such connections, because it strengthens the city – we have global companies thanks to Korea's investments ((e.g., LG Energy Solutions, Industrial Bank of Korea).
It is worth mentioning that over 580 Korean companies are located in the Lower Silesia Province. ‘They account for 48% of all Korean companies that have invested in Poland,’ explained Cezary Przybylski, Marshal of the Lower Silesia Province, who was also present during the conference at the airport.
The first direct flights from Wroclaw to Seoul start in November. Is one connection enough?
‘According to the bilateral agreement between Poland and Korea, there are only five flights possible for each party. On the Polish side, all flights have been operated from Warsaw until now. Seeing how many Koreans fly from us and transfer to other planes at Okęcie, LOT rerouted one of them to Wroclaw. For Wroclaw, this route is a huge opportunity to develop further, particularly after a partnership agreement with Cheongju, where LG Energy Solution is based, was signed in April this year,’ said Karol Przywara, Vice-President of Wroclaw Airport.
‘We would like Wroclaw to receive another slot allowing for an extra connection, but negotiations on the state level are needed here,’ he added.
Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner will reach Seoul in 11 hours
‘It was a long-awaited connection, which we also wanted very much. Passengers in Lower Silesia still have to transfer in Warsaw today. But from 3rd November, they can board the supermodern Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner every Friday in the afternoon and arrive in Korea within 11 hours,’ said Katarzyna Piskorz, President of LOT.
Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner operates intercontinental routes to such destinations as Mumbai, Delhi, New York, Chicago, Toronto, Los Angeles, Seoul, Beijing or Tokyo. All intercontinental flights have been outside Wroclaw so far. Now we can add the flight from Wroclaw to Seoul to this list.
Are Transatlantic flights possible in the nearest future?
Jakub Mazur pointed out the expanding field of co-operation between the Wroclaw agglomeration and foreign investors. He quoted the example of an American company Intel, which is planning to build a huge production plant in Miękinia near Wroclaw, on the one hand, and Tokyo’s investment in the production of Toyota car parts in Poland on the other hand. Foreign companies improve the economic growth of the place where they operate, but they also influence air connections.
