Two officials from the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) departed from Beijing to Pyongyang on March 7, 2018. They will start discussions on opening a new route between Pyongyang and Incheon, after a request was sent by North Korea.

In February 2018, a demand was sent by North Korean government to the ICAO regional bureau in Thailand to open a new route between Sunan International Airport (FNJ) the airport of North Korean capital Pyongyang, and Incheon International Airport (ICN), the biggest airport of South Korea.

Direct flights between the two Koreas have been very limited since the end of the Korean War in 1953. Only a few charter flights have been recorded. The last ones happened in the early 2000s when South Korea’s “Sunshine policy” allowed relatives from both sides to visit each other. But following the missile crisis of 2006, the policy was aborted, and so were the charter flights.

But everything changed around the time of Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. An Airbus A321-200 of Asiana Airlines took South Korean skiers to a training session in North Korea, before flying back carrying the skiers and the North Korean Olympic delegation.

It is around that time that a demand was sent to ICAO local bureau in Thailand. North Korean government proposed that an Air Traffic Service (ATS) route should be set up between Pyongyang Flight Information Region (FIR) and Seoul Incheon FIR.

This new route is under consideration by the ICAO. Its representatives should discuss aviation safety and outline the proposition further with the North Korean officials, according to NHK World.