Air Premia Launches New Route to Washington Dulles in April 2026

SEOUL, South Korea — Air Premia, a South Korean airline, announced plans for a new route to the United States, beginning in April 2026. The airline will operate flights from Seoul Incheon to Washington Dulles Airport starting April 24, aiming to cater to peak summer travel demand.

This new service marks a significant step for Air Premia as it introduces competition on the route with Korean Air. The flights are scheduled for four times a week, and the return journey will take about 15 hours and 25 minutes due to an indirect route that avoids Russian airspace, making it Air Premia’s longest connection to the U.S. to date.

Air Premia operates a fleet of eight Boeing 787-9 aircraft, which have an average age of 7.4 years and can accommodate between 309 and 344 passengers. Alongside the new Washington Dulles route, the airline plans charter flights to Las Vegas beginning in January 2026.

Over the past year, the overall travel market from Seoul to Washington has shown a promising growth with 154,000 passengers traveling this route. This demand places Seoul as the second most trafficked city to the DC area, following Tokyo.

The expansion of Air Premia’s route options reflects the airline’s commitment to strengthening its presence in the U.S. market. The carrier’s U.S. operations began in 2022 and have expanded to include routes to Los Angeles, Newark, and San Francisco, with plans to serve Honolulu by 2025.

Meanwhile, the combined passenger traffic among DC-area airports, including Dulles, Reagan National, and Baltimore, reached approximately 1.5 million travelers to Asia in the past year, underscoring a healthy market for transpacific flights.

As Air Premia prepares for its latest venture into the competitive transpacific market, the addition of the Dulles route signals potential growth opportunities for the airline amid rising passenger interest.