Korean Air to roll out new eco-friendly uniforms for maintenance, aerospace and cargo teams
Korean Air has unveiled new eco-friendly uniforms for its maintenance, aerospace, cargo and ground handling employees. Scheduled for rollout starting April 1, the renewed uniforms have been designed to cater to the diverse needs of the airline’s staff.
The new uniforms prioritize safety and functionality. Specialized fabrics mitigate risks of electrical accidents, and the new design allows for the insertion of knee pads for extra protection when needed. Summer uniforms feature mesh patches behind the knees for breathability, and reflective tape enhances visibility in dim environments. Uniforms ranging from t-shirts, vests, windbreakers to heavy jackets have been developed taking into consideration different tasks and seasons to allow employees to choose an attire suitable for specific environments.
Aligned with Korean Air’s sustainability efforts, the materials have been environmentally certified. The winter jacket is made from Sympatex textile, which is recognized for its thermal insulation, waterproof and windproof properties. The material has received both Bluesign and OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certification, two of Europe’s leading environmental certification labels for textiles. The eco-friendly fabric can be either recycled or naturally decomposed without emitting any toxic substances into the ground.
The new uniforms mark the first uniform overhaul for maintenance, aerospace, cargo and ground handling teams in 38 years, since 1986. Employee feedback was critical in designing the new uniforms to ensure practicality. Functional elements such as pockets for various equipment have been added to meet the needs of the employees. The uniforms were developed according to the nature of the diverse tasks, and the airline held a trial fitting event at its headquarters in Seoul, the Busan Tech Center and Incheon Hangar over the course of four days from March 26.
This initiative follows successful safety footwear upgrades for staff navigating airports, hangars and cargo terminals in May 2023. Employees were able to choose from a variety of safety shoes and try them on before selecting their favorite pair.
About Korean Air
Serving the world for more than 55 years, Korean Air is one of the world’s top 20 airlines, carrying more than 27 million passengers in 2019, pre-COVID. With its global hub at Incheon International Airport (ICN), the airline serves 111 cities in 40 countries on five continents with a modern fleet of 160 aircraft and over 20,000 professional employees.
Korean Air’s outstanding performance and commitment to the highest level of safety and customer service has widely been recognized. The airline has been granted numerous awards including a 5-star airline rating from Skytrax as well as Air Transport World’s Airline of the Year and Cargo Operator of the Year awards.
Korean Air is a founding member of the SkyTeam airline alliance, and has grown into one of the largest transpacific airlines through its joint venture with Delta Air Lines.
For more information about Korean Air, please visit www.koreanair.com, Korean Air Newsroom, facebook.com/KoreanAir, instagram.com/KoreanAirworld and Twitter@KoreanAir_KE.
