President Lee Hak-jae: "Next Year's Digital Transformation... Immigration Will Become More Convenient"

Revealing Next Year's Plans at Regular Media Briefing
Incheon Airport Phase 4 Construction Project to Complete in October
"Improving User Convenience... Striving to Contribute to Korean Industry"

Lee Hak-jae, President of Incheon International Airport Corporation, stated on the 20th, "Incheon Airport is the world's number one airport, but we cannot be complacent," adding, "We will learn the strengths of world-class airports in various fields and strive to excel even more in what we do well next year."

President Lee made these remarks during a regular media briefing held at the Incheon International Airport Corporation headquarters. He said, "Next year will be very busy as it marks the completion of the 4th phase of Incheon Airport's construction project," and added, "We will work to ensure that Incheon Airport contributes not only to passenger convenience but also broadly to the industrial development of the Republic of Korea."

On the 20th, Lee Hak-jae, President of Incheon International Airport Corporation, is speaking at the regular media briefing held at the Incheon International Airport Corporation headquarters.
[Photo by Incheon International Airport Corporation]

The 4th phase construction project is an airport infrastructure expansion involving an investment of approximately 4.8 trillion KRW, scheduled for completion in October next year. Specifically, it includes the expansion of Terminal 2 and the construction of a new 4th runway. After the expansion, Incheon Airport's annual international passenger capacity is expected to increase from 77 million to 106 million, ranking it as the third largest in the world.

Lee, who took office in June, cited 'passenger normalization' as the greatest achievement. The corporation forecasts that about 56 million passengers will use Incheon Airport this year, which corresponds to 78.6% of the 2019 figure before the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of flights is expected to be approximately 338,000, about 83.6% of the 2019 level.

Passenger normalization has positively impacted the corporation's financial performance. This year's estimated revenue is 2.1102 trillion KRW, a 132% increase compared to last year. This also represents 76.5% of the 2019 revenue. Net profit is expected to be about 380 billion KRW, a 72% increase from the previous year.

Incheon Airport has also achieved significant success in customer experience, becoming the first airport in the world to receive the highest level (Level 5) certification in the Airport Council International (ACI) 'Customer Experience Certification Program' for two consecutive years.

On the 20th, Lee Hak-jae, President of Incheon International Airport Corporation, is speaking at the regular media briefing held at the Incheon International Airport Corporation headquarters.
[Photo by Incheon International Airport Corporation]

Regarding plans for next year, President Lee said, "2024 will be the 'Year of Digital Transformation at Incheon Airport,' where we will enhance passenger convenience using advanced technologies and grow into a 'Global Smart Leading' airport group that leads global standards with differentiated services."

Specifically, they plan to improve the quality of immigration services through big data-based forecasting, expansion of contactless and off-airport check-in locations, and the addition of smart security screening facilities. Infrastructure competitiveness will also be secured through the completion of the Terminal 2 expansion project and the commencement of comprehensive improvement works at Terminal 1.

The corporation will also expand overseas business areas, including Batam Airport in Indonesia, Kuwait, and Manila Airport in the Philippines. President Lee stated, "We aim to pursue 10 overseas projects by 2030 and are currently negotiating the operation of Manila Airport in the Philippines."

Meanwhile, the corporation forecasts that next year's international passenger volume at Incheon Airport will range from about 67.5 million (96% of the 2019 level) to 71 million (101% of the 2019 level). Due to the resumption of group tours to China and slot expansions, passenger demand is expected to surpass the 2019 level by 2025.

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