Gyeongnam Governor Reiterates Promotion of "Gadeok New Airport as an Economic New Airport"

Special Act to Promote Construction of Gadeokdo New Airport Aims for Passage Within February Extraordinary National Assembly Session

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Saeyan] On the morning of the 7th, Kim Kyung-soo, Governor of Gyeongnam Province, once again emphasized at the 'December Monthly Strategy Meeting' held at the Provincial Government Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters that "Gadeok New Airport is an essential economic new airport for the regional economy."

To this end, he stated, "Not only the Special Act on the New Airport but also institutional improvements necessary for establishing a Northeast Asia logistics platform, such as expanding the free trade zone and fostering logistics processing industries, must be promoted together."

Since Gimhae Airport does not allow flights to take off or land from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. daily, only two cargo planes have landed in the past three years, and the cargo terminal has been virtually inactive for years.

According to the Busan Research Institute, as of 2018, the lack of cargo routes at Gimhae Airport results in an estimated annual indirect time and economic cost of 26 billion KRW for using Incheon Airport.

Considering companies in Gyeongnam as well, much larger costs are being spent on logistics movement to the metropolitan area.

Meanwhile, on November 26, the Democratic Party of Korea submitted a special bill to promote the construction of Gadeokdo New Airport with 136 affiliated lawmakers. The Democratic Party aims to pass the special law within the February extraordinary session of the National Assembly.

On this day, along with the report on the 'Joint Research on the Establishment of the Southeast Region Development Plan,' the 'Gyeongnam Youth Survey Results and Youth Policy' were also discussed, sharing the current status of youth outflow in Gyeongnam, its causes, and youth policy demands, followed by discussions to create sector-specific youth policies.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.