INCHEON -- Incheon International Airport saw a significant increase in international passengers from January to April this year compared to the same period in 2015, but fewer transfer flyers, the airport said Thursday.
In the first four months of 2016 over 18.2 million passengers flew internationally through Incheon International Airport, up from 16.5 million last year.
Incheon International Airport (Yonhap)
Despite the increased number of flights and flyers, the number of transfer passengers dropped 2.5 percent to 2.5 million. This was due to fewer transfers between destinations in the Americas and Europe, and China and Japan, the airport said in a press briefing.
From January to April, transfer passengers made up only about 13.7 percent of total international passengers, despite Incheon International Airport’s goal of becoming a hub airport that connects flights from all around Asia.
In an effort to improve airport efficiency, the airport also announced that it would be bringing in automated immigration gates that would allow Korean nationals to pass through immigrations simply by scanning their passport.
Although the gates are already in places at Incheon International Airport, flyers must register their passports in advance in order to use the system. Despite the convenience of the automated system, only about 30 percent of flyers use it, according to an Incheon International Airport spokesman.
He said that the airport may have the new system running as early as October this year.
By Won Ho-jung (hjwon@heraldcorp.com)