There is a new Air Koryo flight in town. On March 28th a new service will begin between Pyongyang and Dandong, China. Dandong is the Chinese border city located on the Yalu River and the main entry port for land trade between China and the DPRK.

The flight will operate every Tuesday and Friday in April 2017 as follows (all times Beijing Standard time):

Pyongyang – Dandong 08:30 – 09:00

Dandong – Pyongyang 10:20 – 10:50

Please note that this schedule is subject to possible change in May. We recommend enquiring for details before making travel plans.

The Pyongyang to Dandong leg is perhaps of most interest to Koreans traveling to China, long-term Pyongyang residents, and tourists interested in exploring China after their DPRK trip. The flight allows travelers to avoid the approximately six hour train ride from Pyongyang to the China-DPRK border and have enough time to catch fast trains to onward destinations such as Beijing (G396 at 16:09), Shenyang (numerous), Yanji (D7676 at 14:29), and even Shanghai (G1230 at 11:11). It also allows those traveling on American passports, currently unable to exit Korea by train, to tour Dandong before or after their visit to the DPRK.

The early morning departure from Dandong to Pyongyang means tourists wishing to use the flight to enter the DPRK should still arrive in the city the day before departure or in the early morning. Although the sleeper Train K27 from Beijing has a scheduled arrival of 07:22 to Dandong Station, rare delays may complicate making the air connection and subsequent travel in Korea. One obvious advantage of using the Dandong-Pyongyang leg to enter Korea is that it arrives in the AM, relatively early compared to all other international flights, allowing for more sightseeing on the day of arrival.

Dandong Langtou Airport (DDG; photo below) is approximately a 20 minute taxi ride (~50 RMB) from Dandong train station. It is a relatively small airport and has flights to Beijing, Harbin, Tianjin, Qingdao, Harbin, Yantai, and Shanghai. The airport is located 148 km from Pyongyang as the Air Koryo plane flies. During the Korean War, this airfield was used by Chinese and Soviet pilots engaging UN Forces in 'Mig Alley' above the Yalu River.

The Koryo Courier is a regular posting with the latest news from Koryo Tours.