ROUTE DEVELOPMENT CONNECTING THE WORLD
INCHEON’S EVER-EXPANDING ROUTE NETWORK NOW EXTENDS TO MORE THAN 172 CITIES IN 50 COUNTRIES ACROSS THE GLOBE.
W 86
hen South Korean government offi cials began planning a new international airport to the south of Incheon City their goal was to create a world-class gateway and a hub for Northeast Asia – but even given the ambition of this vision they could have had little idea how successful it would prove to be. Ten years on and Incheon Airport is one of Asia’s leading airports, with 67 airlines operating a route network to 172 cities in 50 countries, while the gateway is ranked the second biggest cargo hub in the world.
Despite the fragile state of the global economy, the airport processed 33 million passengers in 2010, a 17.3% increase, and 2.6 million tons of cargo, an increase of 16% on 2009 fi gures. Such was the rapid growth experienced by Incheon upon its opening that within a year it had begun a second phase expansion plan and, based on current passenger traffi c predictions, it has already begun a third expansion project to increase its capacity to cope with demand.
So how has Incheon become such a thriving regional hub? According to its head of route development, there are many
reasons, but the key one has been the drive to make Incheon one of the most convenient, welcoming and best-connected gateways in Asia. “Through our fl ag carriers, Asiana Airlines and Korean Air,
we are trying to create a short-haul route network spanning the major cities in China and Japan, we want to offer them more ease than one of their own domestic airports would and more connections than our competitors,” says Alex Lee, director of Incheon Airport’s aviation marketing group. Located in an enviable strategic position some 3.5 hours
fl ying time from 100 million people and a 1,000km from 1 billion, Incheon is a convenient springboard for passengers wishing to connect within the region as Incheon Airport describes it, they can use the airport as a ‘short-cut to cities across Asia’.
Nearly half of Incheon’s routes are to its two principal neighbours, China and Japan, the second and third largest economies in the world, with 34 Chinese cities connected to Incheon, including Beijing, Nanjing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, and 28 cities in Japan, such as Toyko, Nagoya, Osaka and Okinawa.
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