Incheon International Airport Corporation announced on the 8th that a total of 1,473,000 people used Incheon Airport during the 7-day May golden holiday period from the 30th of last month to the 6th of this month.
According to Incheon Airport, an average of 210,384 people used the airport daily. This is an increase of 10.1% compared to the same period last year.
The day with the highest number of passengers using Incheon Airport during the holiday period was on the 5th, just before the end of the holiday, with 219,740 people using the airport. The day with the most outgoing passengers was on the 3rd, when 114,741 people used the airport as the holiday officially began. The day with the most incoming passengers was the last day of the holiday, the 6th, when a total of 114,630 people used the airport.
By route, passengers traveling to Japan accounted for the largest share at 26.3%, followed by China at 17.7%, Vietnam at 10.2%, and the United States at 7%.
The corporation forecasted that the number of passengers using Incheon Airport during this golden holiday would be similar to peak seasons such as major holidays. In response to this, it prepared comprehensive measures in advance, including ▲early opening of the departures hall ▲expanding the deployment of information personnel ▲extending the operating hours of duty-free shops and facilities ▲securing additional temporary parking. The corporation explained that it aimed to minimize passenger inconvenience and airport congestion.
Meanwhile, Incheon International Airport Corporation expects that the overlap between the golden holiday period and the recent telecommunications SIM card situation will lead to a significant increase in passengers wishing to replace their SIM cards before departure, and is focusing on on-site support for smooth airport operations.
To this end, the corporation collaborated with telecommunications companies and added a large number of booths for SIM card replacement on the departure floors of both Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, in addition to the existing roaming centers of the specific telecommunications companies. In fact, at Terminal 1, the number of existing booths increased from 17 to 40, and Terminal 2 added 11 booths to the existing 17.
Lee Hak-jae, president of Incheon International Airport Corporation, noted that "given the congestion that occurred due to the increase in departure times during the last Lunar New Year holiday, we have closely collaborated with relevant agencies such as the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Ministry of Justice, and airlines to implement measures to alleviate congestion in preparation for this golden holiday," and added, "We will continue to identify improvements to ensure that passengers can use the airport more conveniently and comfortably, and we will actively support necessary measures, including the expanded operation of telecommunications company roaming centers, to enhance passenger convenience."