Marketing In North Korea (21)

Between Imitation and Erasure: The Story Behind Air Koryo’s Logo Change

Jeon Byung-kil

Senior Consultant of YESInnovation

former of Secretary General of UniKorea Foundation

North Korea no longer talks about reunification.

In late 2023, North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, officially declared an end to the country’s goal of unifying with South Korea. This new position, known as the “Two-Koreas Policy,” marked a big shift in North Korea’s national identity. After the announcement, the government began removing all symbols of reunification. Monuments, school textbooks, songs, and even public slogans were rewritten or taken down. One of the most symbolic examples of this change is the redesign of the Air Koryo logo.

Air Koryo is North Korea’s only national airline. Since 1992, its logo featured a goose flying with wide-spread wings. If you looked closely, the shape of the bird’s wings resembled the map of the Korean Peninsula. The logo wasn’t just artistic—it was a political message showing North Korea’s desire for reunification with the South. But in March 2024, the airline replaced the logo with a completely new design. The new logo removed the Korean peninsula shape and now shows wings that look like a flame or torch.

This wasn’t just a small design update. The new logo was applied to airplane exteriors, tickets, office signs, international branches, and more. Experts say this project likely cost millions of dollars. The surprising part? The old logo that North Korea is now trying to erase was actually inspired by South Korea’s Korean Air.

The Birth of Air Koryo in 1992

The year 1992 was important for both Koreas. After the collapse of the Soviet Union and other communist countries in Eastern Europe, South Korea quickly established diplomatic relations with many of them. At the same time, Korean Air, South Korea’s major airline, was growing fast—opening new routes to Russia, China, and Eastern Europe. Korean Air became a global airline, flying Boeing 747s to the U.S. and Europe.

Meanwhile, North Korea was falling behind. Its airline, then called Korean Airways, only flew to a few places like China and the Soviet Union. The names “Korean Air Lines (South Korea)” and “Korean Airways (North Korea)” were so similar that foreigners often confused the two. To fix this, North Korea decided to rename its airline to Air Koryo on October 1, 1992. It also introduced a new logo.

The new logo showed a blue goose flying in front of a red sun. This design looked surprisingly similar to the old Korean Air logo used between 1969 and 1984, which featured a swan in flight. North Korea claimed it was a goose, not a swan, and added wings shaped like the Korean Peninsula. The design was clearly meant to show national pride and hope for a unified Korea.

When Design Becomes Political

So why is this goose logo a problem now? The answer lies in the wings shaped like the Korean Peninsula. After 2023, North Korea began deleting everything that reminded people of “One Korea.” That included this logo.

According to news reports, Air Koryo had used the same logo across all of its businesses, including a luxury resort, a taxi company, and a food brand. Changing the logo everywhere shows how serious the government is about this new identity. The updated design replaces the goose with something that looks like a flame or torch. In North Korean symbolism, a torch (called bonghwa) is not just fire—it represents the beginning of a new revolution.

In other words, they replaced the dream of reunification with a symbol of loyalty to the ruling party. The logo is no longer about the Korean people—it’s about the North Korean regime.

The Irony of Imitation and Erasure

Looking back, the creation of Air Koryo in 1992 was already ironic. North Korea wanted to be different from South Korea, but it copied its logo design and even used a similar airline name. At the time, North Korea was trying to balance competition, imitation, and a unique identity. But today, even the parts that once copied from South Korea must be erased. Anything connected to the South is now unwanted. Even the idea that Air Koryo once looked like Korean Air is too uncomfortable for North Korea to accept.

In North Korea, design isn’t just about how something looks. Logos, colors, and symbols all carry deep political meaning. The decision to remove the Korean Peninsula shape from Air Koryo’s logo is a clear signal: North Korea no longer believes in “One Korea.” At the same time, it’s an attempt to hide the fact that the old design was inspired by the South.

Reading Politics Through Visual Language

North Korea is not only rewriting its future—it’s also deleting its past. Reunification slogans, South Korean references, and even parts of its own design history are being wiped out. The change in Air Koryo’s logo is just one example. But it tells us a lot.

Politics isn’t always about speeches and laws. Sometimes, it’s in the curve of a logo, the shape of a wing, or the flame of a torch. Air Koryo’s redesign is not just a corporate decision—it’s a symbol of North Korea’s new direction.

Today, planes from Air Koryo no longer carry the shape of the Korean Peninsula. They no longer fly under the hope of “One Korea.” In North Korea’s skies, the dream of reunification is disappearing.