- published: 07 Jan 2011
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Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd. (KRX: 003490), operating as Korean Air, is both the flag carrier and the largest airline of South Korea, with global headquarters located in Seoul, South Korea. Korean Air's international passenger division and related subsidiary cargo division together serve 130 cities in 45 countries, while its domestic division serves 20 destinations. It is among the top 20 airlines in the world in terms of passengers carried and is also the top-ranked international cargo airline. Incheon International Airport serves as Korean Air's international hub. Korean Air also maintains a satellite headquarters campus at Incheon.
Korean Air was founded by the South Korean government in 1962 as Korean Air Lines to replace Korean National Airlines, which was founded in 1946[citation needed]. On 1 March 1969 the Hanjin Transport Group took control of the airline. Long-haul freight operations were introduced on 26 April 1971 followed by passenger services to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on 19 April 1972.