Yoon Hyeong-jung, President of Korea Airports Corporation, Moves to Strengthen Regional Airport-Shanghai Routes

Discussion on Route Activation Measures with Shanghai Airport Group

Korea Airports Corporation announced on the 28th that it discussed measures with Shanghai Airport Authority (SAA) to recover passenger demand on the Korea-China air routes, where demand recovery has been slow.

On the same day, Yoon Hyung-jung, President of Korea Airports Corporation, visited SAA and agreed with Chairman Qin Yun to revitalize the Gimpo-Shanghai route and strengthen connectivity between domestic regional airports such as Daegu and Cheongju to Shanghai. They also plan to jointly promote the operating airports and surrounding tourist destinations using advertising media of both companies.

Yoon Hyung-jung, President of Korea Airports Corporation (4th from the bottom in the right row), and Qin Win, Chairman of Shanghai Airport Group (3rd from the bottom in the left row), are discussing measures to revitalize Korea-China routes.
[Photo by Korea Airports Corporation]

This discussion took place shortly after the Korea-China-Japan Foreign Ministers' Meeting on the 26th, where it was agreed to promptly restore and normalize cooperation between Korea and China. Both representatives agreed on the need for continuous efforts and personnel exchanges to revitalize the routes and decided to immediately activate a working group between the two companies.

As of October this year, passenger traffic on Korea-China routes is about 34% compared to pre-COVID-19 levels. The passenger recovery rate at regional airports excluding Incheon Airport is only 28%.

In preparation for the increase in passenger flow in the Northeast Asia region coinciding with the 2025 Osaka Expo, plans are underway to have the Baese-to (Beijing-Seoul-Tokyo) route connecting the capitals of Korea, China, and Japan, as well as the Shanghai-Seoul-Osaka business shuttle route connecting the three countries' economic centers, serve as a catalyst for revitalizing international exchanges.

Yoon Hyung-jung, President of Korea Airports Corporation (third from the left in the front row), is inspecting the terminal.
[Photo by Korea Airports Corporation]

President Yoon officially proposed a trilateral joint declaration event expressing the will and vision to revitalize the Shanghai-Osaka shuttle route by inviting representatives from Shanghai and Osaka airports to Gimpo Airport early next year. He also requested active interest and cooperation for the ‘Airports Innovate’ event scheduled to be held in Busan in 2025.

Furthermore, both parties agreed to explore mutual cooperation measures to strengthen support for business passengers at airports, including simplifying immigration procedures and improving airport services by incorporating the latest smart technologies.

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