Incheon International Airport Corporation reported that the number of passengers in the first quarter of this year (January to March) totaled 18.6 million as of the 16th. This marks a 7.8% increase compared to the same period last year, setting a new record for the highest quarterly figure.
The route with the highest increase in passenger numbers in the first quarter of this year was the China route. The number of passengers on the China route reached 2.66 million, a 24.1% increase compared to the same period last year. This is believed to be influenced by the temporary visa waiver measure. Growth rates for Japan (10.4%) and Northeast Asia (16.1%) routes also recorded double digits.
Incheon International Airport Corporation explained that 84.3% of all flights in the first quarter of this year were short-haul routes. The sharp rise in the exchange rate has clearly influenced the preference for short-distance travel.
Incheon International Airport Corporation recorded revenues of 643.2 billion won, operating profit of 199.1 billion won, and net profit of 166.2 billion won in the first quarter of this year. While maintaining a profit, both operating profit and net profit remained about 40% lower compared to pre-COVID-19 levels in 2019.
Incheon International Airport Corporation anticipates that the number of international passengers this year could increase to a maximum of 76.64 million, and has decided to focus more on on-site response.
Lee Hak-jae, president of Incheon International Airport Corporation, said, “As airport operations have returned to normal, I also expect to achieve record performance this year,” and noted, “We will do our best to minimize customer inconvenience even during the holiday period.”