Few bits & pieces I found on the subject.
LONDON, Sept 20 (Reuters) - Airlines, facing big hikes in war risk insurance after the attacks on the United States, could be grounded if they fail to agree new cover with insurance underwriters by Monday, industry experts said on Thursday.
Airlines are required to have insurance covering a whole range of risks, including hijacking and war, and are not permitted to fly without this cover, a spokesman for the UK´s Civil Aviation Authority said.
Aviation insurers are entitled to withdraw cover for war risks, including terrorism, with seven days notice.
Insurers issued notices of cancellation to airlines which take effect on Tuesday after thousands of people were killed last week by hijacked passenger jet attacks in New York and Washington.
Korean airline, shipping war premiums up 500-700 pct
By Park Sung-woo
SEOUL, Sept 20 (Reuters) - South Korean airlines and shipping companies said on Thursday their war risk insurance premiums would jump 500 to 700 percent annually as a result of rising tensions following last week´s deadly U.S. attacks.
The airlines, already wincing from a U.S. safety downgrade and grappling with falling traffic demand and oil price worries, said they may be forced to seek government assistance.
Shipping companies said they expected their insurance premiums to rise nearly 500 percent and they may raise freight rates to cover the costs.
Lloyd´s of London [LOL.UL] notified the airlines on Tuesday war risk premiums for aircraft would be raised up to 700 percent from October 1, spokesmen for Korea´s two carriers said.
Lloyds is also demanding that the airlines pay a new per-passenger surcharge of $1.25 as part of increased insurance cover.
The annual aircraft insurance costs for Korean Air (KAL) <03490.KS>, the nation´s largest carrier, would rise to $4.86 million from the current $560,000, KAL spokesman Lee Chang-wook said.
The new passenger surcharge would cost the airline roughly $27 million annually, Lee said. Korean Air carries an average of 60,000 passengers per day.
Second-ranked Asiana Airlines <20560.KQ> would see annual aircraft premiums rise more than 500 percent to $2.3 million from $300,000 and the new passenger surcharge would be about $16 million a year, Asiana spokesman Kim Haeng-seok said.
The airlines said they would need the government´s support.
"We are reviewing asking the government to extend indirect supports to us instead of direct financial support," KAL´s Lee said.
"We´ll soon formally request (it) once we decide what we need," he said.
Indirect support could include government participation in shouldering the costs of stricter security standards, deregulation or route rescheduling, he said.
But another KAL spokesman said the airline was not reviewing an increase in fares despite the higher insurance costs.
The two airlines saw about 26 billion won ($20.20 million) in losses from flight disruptions on U.S. routes in the wake of the U.S. attacks and they said additional losses should be expected if there was U.S. retaliation for the attacks.
SHIPPING COMPANIES HIT TOO
Korean shipping companies said they had not been formally notified that their insurance premiums would rise but they were expecting to be informed soon of an increase.
They said they were reviewing an increase in freight rates to cover the higher insurance costs.
Hanjin Shipping <00700.KS>, one of the nation´s leading shipping firms, said its monthly insurance premiums would rise to around $125,000 a month from the current $25,000.
"We are reviewing an increase in our sea freight rates. There´s no other way to cope with the increase," an official at Hanjin told Reuters.
Hyundai Merchant Marine <11200.KS> said its insurance premiums would likely jump to $195,000 per month from $39,000.
Shares of Korean Air rose 90 won to 4,450, while Asiana was fell 70 won to 1,200 on Thursday.
Hanjin shares firmed 25 won to 3,325, while Hyundai Merchant increased 260 won to 2,000.
($1=1287.0 Won)
KAL says cargo jets may bypass Tashkent on war risk
SEOUL, Sept 20 (Reuters) - Korean Air (KAL) <03490.KS>, the world´s second-largest cargo carrier, said on Thursday it was looking for an alternative refuelling stopover, switching from Tashkent in Uzbekistan, because of the risk of war.
Every week, a total of 12 Boeing 747-400 freighters heading for European cities including London, Amsterdam and Frankfurt, stop to refuel in Tashkent, KAL spokesman William Han told Reuters.
"We don´t know clearly as of now whether the region is unsafe, but just in case, we are looking into other places for refuelling," Han said.
"And the most likely alternative is Anchorage, Alaska. We are ready to go for it immediately in case of emergency," he said.
According to the Washington Post earlier this week, Uzbekistan´s foreign minister has said his country is willing to discuss with the United States using its bases and airspace to attack extremist groups in Afghanistan.
KAL has cancelled a passenger flight to Cairo via Dubai scheduled on Thursday to avoid any possible risk of being caught up in U.S. retaliation in the region against those behind last week´s air attacks on U.S. landmarks.
Korean Air operates an Airbus 330-200 with 280 seats to Cairo twice a week, on Mondays and Thursdays, and no decisions were made regarding next week´s flights.
Shares in Korean Air were down 150 won at 4,210 at 0147 GMT on Thursday, while the benchmark stock index <.KS11> was off 2.25 percent at 475.80.
Notso: you're becoming somewhat boring.