Incheon International Airport reports strong passenger performance in the first half of the year

• International passenger traffic in the first half of the year increased by 39.5% compared to the previous year, reaching 96.6% of the 2019 level

• By region, Southeast Asia (10.47 million), Japan (8.54 million), and China (4.63 million) had the highest passenger traffic

 
Incheon International Airport Corporation (President Hag Jae Lee) announced that the airport recorded 34,048,517 passengers in the first half of the year, achieving a 96.6% recovery compared to the first half of 2019 (35,258,765 passengers).

This recovery was driven by a 39.5% increase in passenger traffic compared to the first half of the previous year(24,401,190 passengers), with a peak of 213,351 passengers recorded on February 25 when winter holidays and international student arrivals coincided after COVID-19.
 
The corporation attributes this growth to factors such as the early winter holiday season, sustained preference for short-haul routes like Southeast Asia and Japan, and the recovery in passenger traffic on Chinese routes. By region, passenger traffic was highest in Southeast Asia(10,468,345, 30.7% of total), followed by Japan (8,543,501, 25.1%) and China (4,628,310, 13.6%).

Notably, Chinese routes recorded a 71.3% recovery rate compared to the first half of 2019 (6,496,698 passengers), showing a steep recovery trend since last year.

International flights totaled 1,930,579 flights in the first half of 2024, a 34.0% increase from the same period last year(147,803 flights), nearly reaching the first half of 2019(197,639 flights). This increase is attributed to a 96.1% recovery in passenger flights and sustained cargo flights, which increased by 43.7% compared to pre-COVID levels.
* Passenger flights ('19 1st half) 180,401 flights → ('22 1st half) 242,770 flights → ('24 1st half) 173,305 flights

   Cargo Flights ('19 1st half ) 172,238 flights → ('22 1st half) 436,880 flights → ('24 1st half) 247,740 flights

Transit passengers in the first half of 2024 increased by 19.7% to 40,374,755 compared to the first half of 2023 (33,720,835), showing a 97.1% recovery from the first half of 2019 (41,590,074). This increase is attributed to increased demand for transfers in Incheon on routes to China and the Americas following international tensions.
* (Transit passengers by route)
  (China) ('23 1st half) 207,582 passengers → ('24 1st half) 498,187 passengers (+140.0%)
  (Americas) ('23 1st half) 1,104,891 passengers → ('24 1st half) 1,289,781 passengers (+16.7%)

In terms of international cargo, performance in the first half of this year was 1,447,358 tons, a 10.1% increase from the same period last year (1,314,781 tons), showing continued recovery since the third quarter of last year due to increased e-commerce volume.
* (Year-on-year change) ('23 1st half) -15.3% → ('23 2nd half) 2.6% → ('24 1st half) 10.1%

Hag jae Lee, Presient & CEO of IIAC stated: "With the recovery in aviation demand, many people are using Incheon Airport. We plan to complete the Phase 4 expansion project by the end of this year and accelerate airport service innovation such as digital transformation based on Vision 2040, to provide safer and more convenient airport services to our citizens.”