Korean Air sees no drop in U.S. bookings because of MERS

By Jeffrey Dastin

MIAMI (Reuters) – Korean Air Lines Co Ltd has seen some concern from U.S. customers about the outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in South Korea but bookings from the United States have not been affected, an executive at the airline said.

The Seoul-based airline has received calls from U.S. customers asking about the safety of travel to the region, although sales numbers suggest demand is steady, said John E. Jackson, Korean Air’s vice president of passenger marketing and sales for the Americas.

He was speaking in Miami on Sunday on the sidelines of the International Air Transport Association’s annual meeting.

South Korea has 87 cases of MERS, the second highest number of infections in the world after Saudi Arabia, according to data from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control.

At least six people have died of the disease in the country.

(Reporting by Jeffrey Dastin in Miami; Editing by Leslie Adler)

• Korean Air
• South Korea