List of Air Koryo destinations

Air Koryo^[a] is the flag carrier of North Korea,^[1] owned by the country's National Aviation Administration of the DPRK, formerly the Air Koryo Administration.^[2] It was established in early 1950, soon after the creation of the country's flag, as Soviet–North Korean Airline or SOKAO,^[b] a joint venture between the North Korean and Soviet governments operating flights between Pyongyang and Vladivostok, with select flights transiting in Chongjin, North Korea. More routes were then launched to serve cities of the Manchuria region in China: Beijing, as well as Chita via Shenyang, Harbin, Qiqihar, and Hailar. They were all operated using the Lisunov Li-2,^[3] and as part of an alliance with Soviet flag carrier Aeroflot who sought to expand its network.^{[citation needed]}

Shortly after, the Korean War meant suspending services up to July 1953, when it was rebranded Ukamps and its network was shrunk to Pyongyang, Beijing, and Shenyang. It henceforth expanded its fleet, comprising Soviet Union products.^[4] On 21 September 1955, it was rebranded again to Korean Airways,^[c] with ownership shifted to the North Korean government following the Civil Aviation Administration of Korea. Domestic flights to Hamhung, North Korea, were added in 1958, but due to the North Korean people's lack of income and restrictions on travel, all domestic flights were temporarily discontinued. European flights to Berlin, Prague, and Moscow were launched using their first jetliner, the Tupolev Tu-154. In March 1992, following the end of the Cold War, it was rebranded again to Air Koryo and operated cargo routes to Russia and China using the Ilyushin Il-76. In 2006, the same year an accident occurred, the airline was banned from European Union airspace due to safety and maintenance concerns,^{[citation needed]} and it has since not resumed routes there despite their Tupolev Tu-204 being granted flying rights in March 2010.^{[citation needed]}

Air Koryo saw various route cancellations due to its controversial government. On 20 April 2011, it launched flights to Kuala Lumpur,^[5] with the last flight on 8 June 2014; it was later banned in 2017 due to sanctions following the assassination of Kim Jong-nam at the airport.^[6] In 2011, flights to Kuwait City were launched; however, six months later it was cancelled to prevent North Koreans from spreading news of the Arab Spring to their homeland.^[7] It later resumed in March 2014,^[8] but in October 2016 the airline was banned by the government, citing the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2270.^[9] In July 2017, Pakistan banned the airline in Islamabad, often used as refueling stopover for the Kuwait route. In April, flights to Bangkok were banned.^[6] On 2 August 2019, following a 15-year pause, Air Koryo resumed flights to Macau.^[10] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all flights were cancelled starting February 2020.^[11] On 22 August 2023, the airline resumed operations with a flight to Beijing as well as two flights to Vladivostok on 25 and 28 August.^[12] The last Beijing flight was on 29 August; it was theorized the flights were only repatriating abroad North Korean citizens, and as bilateral token gestures.^[11]