Osan passenger terminal being greatly expanded

A new air passenger terminal at Osan Air Base in Gyeonggi is being enlarged to provide not only many new conveniences but also create a hub for defending South Korea in a crisis.

The new terminal, at some 7,540 square meters (81,159 square feet), will be five times bigger than the current one, according to yesterday’s edition of the Stars and Stripes, the U.S. military’s independent news source.

The terminal is scheduled to open in late June. At a cost of $18.6 million, the facility will include an enlarged ramp so aircraft can pull up to the terminal and a one-story cargo building for the South Korean Air Force, the newspaper said.

The bigger terminal will be established for U.S. military personnel and their families entering and departing South Korea as the country is going to experience influx of military family members due to the U.S. military’s “tour normalization” policy, said the Stars and Stripes.

Tour normalization refers to U.S. troops serving in the South longer than in the past, and the presence of their accompanying family members.

The Stars and Stripes said the terminal is designed for U.S. forces in South Korea as well as troops from the U.S. mainland who would be deployed quickly in case of emergencies.

In particular, the terminal will have a pressurized sterile facility in which inbound and outbound U.S. soldiers can be protected from a North Korean chemical attack.

By Lee Min-yong [smartpower@joongang.co.kr]