Star Alliance To Take Over Incheon Premium Lounge After Asiana’s Exit

Star Alliance plans to establish its seventh airport lounge in the world at Seoul Incheon International Airport (ICN) to fill a void when longtime member Asiana Airlines exits the global airline grouping in December.

Asiana will leave Star Alliance on Dec. 16 as the carrier’s merger with SkyTeam Airline Alliance member Korean Air is scheduled to take effect on Dec. 17. Asiana has been a member of Star Alliance since 2003.

Asiana’s departure will leave the airline alliance without a South Korean member. The carrier currently operates a premium lounge in Terminal 1 at ICN. Star Alliance signed a memorandum of understanding with ICN on Sept. 8 to transition the lounge to a Star Alliance-branded and operated space during the fourth quarter of 2026.

Even without the presence of a local member, 14 Star Alliance airlines will continue to operate to and from ICN following Asiana’s exit, including Air Canada, Air China, Air India, Air New Zealand, EVA Air, Ethiopian Airlines, Lufthansa, LOT Polish Airlines, Swiss International Air Lines, Singapore Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines, Thai Airways, Turkish Airlines and United Airlines.

Star Alliance premium passengers largely have lounge access at airports around the world via airline-branded and operated spaces. But the alliance currently has branded lounges at six airports, including Amsterdam, Buenos Aires, Guangzhou Baiyun, Los Angeles, Paris Charles de Gaulle and Rio de Janeiro/Galeao.

The transferred Terminal 1 lounge will allow for “seamless premium lounge services” for passengers of member airlines at ICN, Star Alliance and ICN said in a joint statement. The 14 Star Alliance carriers operating at ICN connect the airport to 29 destinations.

ICN is “an important gateway” where member carriers want to provide premium passengers with service consistent with other major airports in the airline grouping’s network, Star Alliance Vice President-Customer Experience Ambar Franco said.

“This agreement [with Star Alliance] is part of our efforts to provide stable and high-quality services … amid major changes, including the integration of Asiana Airlines and Korean Air,” ICN COO Kim Chang-gyu said, adding the lounge transfer will provide infrastructure necessary for Star Alliance members to “expand various networks based at Terminal 1.”