Yoon vows to turn Incheon into 'global mega hub' airport by 2026

Politics

Published: 07 Mar. 2024, 18:56

Yoon vows to turn Incheon into 'global mega hub' airport by 2026

President Yoon Suk Yeol, center, attends the groundbreaking ceremony for the Great Train Express-B (GTX-B) express rail line, which will connect Incheon with downtown Seoul and Gyeonggi, at Songdo Convensia in Incheon on Thursday. During a town hall meeting earlier that day, Yoon focused on growing Korea's aviation and shipping industries by .[JOINT PRESS CORPS]

President Yoon Suk Yeol said Thursday that the latest Incheon International Airport expansion work, expected to be completed this year, will be a step toward turning the area into a "global mega hub" airport complex by 2026.

"We must use Incheon as a bridgehead to realize great innovations in aviation and shipping, our strategic industries," Yoon said at a town hall meeting held at Incheon City Hall, and "significantly grow our aviation industry centering around Incheon International Airport."

Yoon said that once the fourth phase of construction work at Incheon Airport — which will expand the second passenger terminal and add a fourth runway — is completed in October this year, Korea's primary international gateway "will leap forward to become a global mega hub airport."

Through the expansion of aviation infrastructure, Korea plans to build a high-tech aviation complex in a newly designated free trade zone behind Incheon Airport by 2026.

Yoon said the complex will host global companies and create more than 5,000 quality jobs, anticipating production worth 10 trillion won ($7.5 billion) over the next decade.

Yoon said that the benefits offered would include reductions in property taxes, tariff exemptions and rent discounts.

The Land Ministry expects that once the fourth-phase expansion, a 4.8 trillion won project, is completed, the airport will be able to service up to 100 million passengers annually.

This marks Yoon's 18th public livelihood debate, held on the theme of "Incheon, the gateway city of Korea," bringing together government officials and civilian experts to discuss infrastructure projects to upgrade the port city into an aviation and shipping hub.

The government also plans to develop the seaside city's shipping industry by increasing infrastructure investment around the Port of Incheon.

Yoon said 1 trillion won would be invested in two wharves at Incheon New Port to upgrade it into a "smart port" that uses artificial intelligence (AI) and self-driving cars to transport cargo.

The government plans to speed up the development of a site behind the Incheon Port International Passenger Terminal to begin the "Incheon Golden Harbor Project," which will build a comprehensive tourism complex comprising hotels, condominiums, a shopping mall, a water park and cruises.

Yoon added that the government will also work to develop the airline service industry and ensure that the envisioned merger between Korean Air and Asiana Airlines "creates good synergy."

Korean Air has been pursuing a merger with the country's second-largest carrier since November 2020.

During the town hall meeting, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said it would monitor against higher airfare and other potential adverse effects of aviation monopolization through the merger, including the growth of low-cost carriers.

The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) also plans to establish a supervision committee to review the process of integrating customers' mileage, according to the ministry.

The government also said it aims to reach 130 million international passengers by 2030.

It also plans to expand land, sea and air logistics infrastructure and provide a 24-hour nationwide delivery service.

Yoon later promised that the Great Train Express-B (GTX-B) express railway line, which will connect Incheon to Namyangju, Gyeonggi, will open by 2030.

This is expected to cut the commuting time from Incheon to central Seoul to under 30 minutes.

Yoon later attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the GTX-B express railway line held at Songdo Convensia in Incheon.

In this opening speech, he highlighted that the GTX-B line would lower the travel time from Incheon's Songdo to western Seoul's Yeouido to just 23 minutes and Seoul Station to 29 minutes.

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]