Air Busan reaches 5 mln passenger mark

SEOUL, July 25 (Yonhap) -- Air Busan Co., a South Korean low-cost air carrier, said Monday that its cumulative number of passengers breached the 5 million mark after about three years in service.
Air Busan said a 57-year-old Busan resident on a flight from his hometown to Tokyo earlier in the day was the 5 millionth passenger. Air Busan is the first among local budget airlines to reach the milestone.
Air Busan, whose controlling stake is owned by No. 2 full-service carrier Asiana Airlines Inc., launched service in October 2008 with a route between Seoul's Gimpo and Busan.
More than 1.07 million people flew domestically with Air Busan in the first half of the year, accounting for 10.6 percent of total passengers, the biggest market share among the five low-cost air carriers.
Air Busan posted 80 billion won (US$75.9 million) in sales in the first half of this year, targeting annual sales of 180 billion won for all of 2011.
brk@yna.co.kr