North Korea's state-owned national carrier, Air Koryo is a subject of great curiosity among many avgeeks. From its hub at Pyongyang Sunan International Airport (FNJ), the airline flies to a handful of domestic destinations and, after a recent international restart, in neighboring China and Russia. But what aircraft does it operate these services with? Let's take a look and find out.
Air Koryo's young Antonovs
According to data from ch-aviation.com, Air Koryo has a fleet made up of 15 aircraft from Ukraine and Russia, with some even dating back to the Soviet era. The fleet as a whole is rather old, with an average age of 33.2 years! However, the airline does have a pair of noticeably younger jets that are keeping this future from topping the 35-year mark, having not yet reached an average age of 10 years old.
These regional jets belong to Antonov's An-148 family. They feature a two-class, 70-seat configuration. Business class consists of an exclusive, eight-seat cabin arranged in a four-abreast (2-2) layout. Meanwhile, the remaining 62 seats have a five-abreast (3-2) setup. Air Koryo received its An-148s brand new in 2012 and 2015.
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These aircraft are examples of the An-148-100 variant and are 10.79 (P-671) and 8.57 (P-672) years old, respectively. This gives the type a comparatively young average age of just 9.7 years. Perhaps unsurprisingly, given the secretive nature of most things to do with North Korea, they have no hours/cycles data.
Two Ilyushin designs
Moving on to the Ilyushin Design Bureau, this Moscow-based company (now part of the United Aircraft Corporation/UAC) has three designs present at Air Koryo. The oldest of these is the Il-18D, of which the North Korean flag carrier has a single example at its disposal. Registered as P-835, this 100-seat aircraft is a whopping 54.54 years old and has flown for Air Koryo since 1981.
Next up, we have the airline's three examples of the Ilyushin Il-62, which was the world's largest jetliner at the time of its launch in 1963. At present, ch-aviation's data shows that two of these vintage quadjets remain active today.
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However, with a striking average age of some 39.3 years old, their days may be numbered. Historically speaking, the airline has operated a further two Il-62s. The North Korean carrier configures the type with 190 seats across two classes.
Ilyushin also has a presence when it comes to Air Koryo's cargo division. This is made up of three examples of the company's Il-76TD design. These have an average age of 32.8 years and have spent their entire careers with Air Koryo since joining in 1990. All three of these high-winged jets are still listed as being active today.
A trio of Tupolev families
Another popular aircraft manufacturer at Air Koryo, in terms of having three different families present, is Tupolev. Starting with the lowest-numbered model name, the airline operates two Tupolev Tu-134B-3 aircraft which have an average age of 39.7 years old and is reportedly the last carrier to do so. One is currently active while the other is in storage, and each of them seats 76 economy class passengers.
While 39.7 years old is a hefty average age for Air Koryo's Tu-134s, they are outdone by the three-engine Tu-154B. Two of these serve the North Korean carrier, with a whopping average age of 44.2 years old! They have been with the airline for their entire careers. Historically speaking, Air Koryo has also operated another two of these trijets, which seat 152 passengers across two classes.
Finally, at the more modern end of the spectrum, Air Koryo also has a pair of (albeit inactive) Tupolev Tu-204s. One of these is a comparatively young 176-seat Tu-204-100, clocking in at a youthful 14.3 years old. Meanwhile, the other example belongs is a smaller Tu-204-300 aged 30.7 years old. This particular plane began life as a 204-100 before being converted, and it now has 166 seats.
Did you know about the makeup of Air Koryo's fleet? Which aircraft types do you think that it will operate in the future? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
Source: ch-aviation.com