Review of Korean Air flight from Seoul to Busan in Economy

Before continuing on to Busan after arriving at Seoul, I had spent some six hours in the airport. At first I went to 'Matina Gold Lounge' where I spent first three hours.

Spending six hours at ICN

This lounge only accepts some premium credit cards, mostly the ones issued in Korea. I paid $50 to get into.

Normally I wouldn't pay extra to get into a lounge while transiting, but this time I just had to. This flight was KAL's so-called 'transit exclusive domestic flight', a kind of flights offered between ICN and Busan/Daegu. You can get to those destinations without having to go to the Seoul's other airport (Gimpo - GMP), and with no additional check in needed. One downside is that you can't leave the Terminal 2 of ICN once you arrive, since immigration will be cleared in your final destination. But the worst part is yet to come - though don't get me wrong, I think the service itself is very useful. 

The lounge was on the emptier side, and had a variety of seating options. 

There was also a screen displaying the departing flights. There I noticed one more 'transit exclusive domestic flight' which also headed to Busan but way earlier. Why was I not able to find that flight? Maybe they add that flight after my booking? It was disappointing but I decided to just stop crying over something that can't be changed. At least I wouldn't have been in lounge if I was taking that flight instead… 

There were a buffet for food options, as well as a selection of Korean cup noodles. The food were very good, although I wish they also had a la carte dining too, given high entry requirements. 

I picked some food and had the first lunch in Korea in a couple months. 

Before leaving, I decided to take a shower - you can request a shower suite key at the reception counter. The shower suite was basic but being able to shower itself is nice, so not that I have a major complaints here… 

After that I left the lounge, without realising that I left my earbuds' charging case on my seat. Thankfully, the lounge staff noticed that and handed me that. I don't have a high expectations when it comes to ICN staff - they're simply unfriendly and inefficient, though they're mostly the ones employed by the airport corporation, not by shops and lounges. So I was kind of impressed - I thanked the staff and went down to the departure level. Then I spent some time spotting planes, and at the end went to the gate way early and waited there. 

Boarding

This 2013-built 737-900ER, registered HL8273, was my ride to Busan. KAL has six of those B739s in addition to nine of non ER variants. 

Since I was sitting on the back side of the plane, I was in zone two so was able to board the plane quite early. 

Cabin

KAL 73Js are in a C8Y165 configuration. Two rows of Prestige Class in a 2-2 layout - the seat pitch is 50 inches, which is one of the best among all other narrow-body business class. 

After passing eight-seat Prestige Class cabin, there was 165-seat economy class cabin. Like their non ER 737-900s, the seats are quite tight - in all directions. 

Every seat had an IFE screen, but they were small and irresponsive (they use Panasonic eX2 system, which is fairly dated). The IFE contents were almost the same, but there were no kids or games (which was empty on planes that had this section as well) sections. There was no Wi-Fi, but KAL is currently installing Wi-Fi on 737-900ERs, as well as replacing the seat covers.

The tray table could be folded twice and had a cup holder on it. The recline was okay, I thought.

Before Pandemic, these 737-900ERs were in a C12Y147 configuration, with 33 inches of seat pitch in economy. But now, they cramped some extra seats in, making it uncomfortable for anyone who's taller than 180 centimetres (like myself). Though I think I've seen worse, so no major complaints here. 

As it's a norm on narrow-body planes, this 737-900ER also had personal air vents. 

The lavatories had nothing home to write about. 

While pushing back, the main cabin lights were dimmed and these blue mood lights were turned on. 

An Emirates A380 that came from the same origin - Dubai. I've never flown Emirates so far, so seeing their planes always make me wonder what is it like… 

Services & in-flight experience

At this point, KAL announced that they'd suspend in-flight services around 40 minutes before landing. This meant no service on their domestic flights at all - all of domestic flights in Korea has a flight time less than that. But I'm not sure did they cancel than implementation, or… since all passengers did get a complimentary drinks.

So I asked for a cold barley tea. The crew even offered round two for every passengers, before finally collecting cups. 

While I think this full drink service is totally acceptable for a short domestic flight, I'm not sure whether I think the same about their Prestige Class as well, because they get the same service as the economy class. I think they could at least offer a sandwich, especially because they do provide a brunch service on PUS-FUK flights which is as short as their domestic flights. 

In-flight view. I'm wondering why do KAL paint the winglet of their planes only the outside, not inside. Hopefully this will change with their new livery… 

The crew were kind and attentive given the short flight - to be fair there wasn't a lot of services to provide either. 

Landing & arrival

The flight was coming to an end, and I saw this horse racing track while landing. Despite Busan being my hometown, there weren't a lot of places I saw that I recalled, because this part of the city has changed a lot, and I lived on the opposite side of the city as well.

Then on final approach (I think) these super blue mood lights were turned on. We landed about two minutes early than the schedule. 

The plane was parked at a proper gate of the international terminal. Then I went through the CIQ and then the luggage claim. 

I had to wait quite a long time to pick up my luggage, possibly because my flight arrived some six hours before the departure and thus loaded very early..,

After that I met my family, and headed to the home.