Korea Airports Corp. unveils summer transport plan for nationwide hubs

Gimpo International Airport in western Seoul is busy with passengers getting ready to board domestic flights, Tuesday. Courtesy of Korea Airports Corp.

The Korea Airports Corp. (KAC) announced Wednesday that it will implement a special summer transportation plan to manage an anticipated increase in travel demand.

The initiative, running from July 25 to Aug. 10, will cover all airports nationwide except Incheon International Airport.

Over the 17-day peak holiday period, the airport operator expects 24,067 flights carrying approximately 4.31 million passengers — 3.15 million on international routes and 1.16 million on domestic ones. This represents a slight increase from last year’s daily average of 1,365 flights and 238,729 travelers during the summer holiday season.

The busiest travel days during this period are expected to be July 25 for Gimpo International Airport in Seoul, July 26 for Gimhae International Airport in Busan and Aug. 4 for Jeju International Airport.

KAC will conduct facility inspections and reinforce safety and passenger services to ensure smooth operations.

To ease congestion, it will open check-in counters earlier, increase ID and security checkpoint staffing and adjust immigration booth operations. Temporary parking totaling over 29,000 spaces has also been secured.

KAC will offer international shipping of lost items from seven airports for overseas passengers.

As well, KAC is actively preparing for the upcoming APEC summit, scheduled for late October to early November in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province. To support the international event, it is enhancing facilities at five designated airports: Gimhae, Pohang-Gyeongju, Daegu, Ulsan and Gimpo.

Preparations include securing additional aircraft parking spaces and remodeling VIP lounges to accommodate visiting dignitaries and ensure seamless airport operations throughout the summit.