Photo: Eastar Jet's Boeing 737-700. Credit: Eastar Jet.
Budget air carrier Eastar Jet 이스타항공, which went bankrupt in October 2020 because of the drop in travel demand during the pandemic, will be sold to Seongjeong Construction, Inc. 성정건설, a little-known mid-sized construction company based in Buyeo, Chungcheongnam-do Province 충청남도 부여.
The announcement raised eyebrows as Seongjeong’s annual revenue in 2020 was only KRW 5.9b (USD 5.2m), while the company’s bid for Eastar Jet was KRW 110b (USD 97m). Seongjeong said the founders of the company will use their personal wealth to acquire the airline. The former owner of Eastar Jet was Assembly Member Lee Sang-jik, 국회의원 이상직 who quit the Democratic Party 민주당 after coming under investigation for embezzlement allegations.