Enhanced screening, labor shortages cause check-in delays at award-winning airport

Passengers wait in line at a check-in counter at Incheon International Airport Terminal 1, on Dec. 23 (Newsis)
Passengers wait in line at a check-in counter at Incheon International Airport Terminal 1, on Dec. 23 (Newsis)

Incheon International Airport is grappling with mounting congestion at its departure security checkpoints, as newly introduced screening equipment aimed at enhancing accuracy and efficiency has yet to alleviate recent bottlenecks.

Last December, the airport ambitiously unveiled its expanded Terminal 2, transforming it into one of the world's three largest mega-airports, with the capacity to handle 100 million passengers annually. As part of the expansion plan, the airport introduced state-of-the-art circular security scanners capable of 360-degree passenger scans, and implemented a Smart Pass System utilizing artificial intelligence and biometric recognition.

A passenger from Seoul, surnamed Lee, who was scheduled to board a 4:55 p.m. flight to Phuket on Jan. 2, described her unusually long experience. "I arrived at the airport around 1:40 p.m. After checking in my luggage, the security screening alone took over an hour," Lee said.

Based on her observations while waiting, the primary issue appeared to be a "shortage of staff."

"There were far fewer operational security checkpoints compared to the number of passengers waiting to be screened. After passing through security, I had only about 30 minutes of spare time," she added.

Another traveler, who flew on Jan. 9 for a regular business trip, remarked that the process seemed to take around 20–30 minutes longer than usual.

Incheon International Airport Terminal 1 (Newsis)
Incheon International Airport Terminal 1 (Newsis)

According to industry reports, the new equipment can process 260 items per hour, compared to the old system's 145 items, reducing the time required per passenger from 25 seconds to 14 seconds. However, the new scanners require more staff to operate, with seven employees needed per unit compared to 4.5 for the older models, the airport confirmed.

Terminal 1 has fully implemented the new equipment since 2022, with all 33 security checkpoints upgraded. In Terminal 2, however, only 7 of the 35 checkpoints currently use the new scanners, reports indicated.

One of Incheon Airport's largest labor unions has criticized the new equipment for frequent errors, such as lightweight items falling out of trays due to additional radiation shielding curtains. Each error reportedly requires about four minutes to reset the equipment, leading to ongoing delays.

An Incheon Airport official downplayed these concerns, attributing delays to passenger behaviors rather than equipment issues.

"Claims about malfunctions are not true," the official said. "Since it is the winter season, many passengers are wearing thick and layered clothing, which takes time to remove during the screening process. Those wearing winter boots or heels higher than 3.5 cm are required to remove them before entering the circular scanner, as per the enhanced security regulations introduced late last year."

Meanwhile, the labor union argues that general staffing levels are inadequate to manage the recent surge in passengers, pointing out that while 1,135 additional employees are needed for the expanded facilities, only 200 have been hired so far.

To ease congestion during peak travel periods, including the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday, Incheon Airport announced measures such as deploying temporary security staff and increasing the operational hours of departure halls.