Korean airline merger faces debt burden and antitrust concerns

SEOUL -- When South Korea's state-owned development bank in mid-November unveiled its plan to create a "top 10 global airline" by backing a restructuring of the country's two main carriers, it seemed like an appeal to national pride -- but not everyone was buying it.

Inside Asiana Airlines, employees were shocked at the news that the larger Korean Air Lines, their bitter rival, was to be their new owner as part of Seoul's plan to help the domestic aviation sector weather the pandemic.