IAA Eying World-Class
Logistic Hub

Wins Best Airport Worldwide in IATA/ACI Survey for second time last year

Incheon International Airport (IIA) marks the sixth anniversary on March 29, just six years after OZ3423 Flight originating from Bangkok landed on a runway at 4:40 a.m. the same day in 2001, heralding IIA's official debut to the global airport map.
Overcoming initial some glitches after its opening, IIA has been wining global reputation as one of the world's best international airport service providers, beating such mega-airports as Singapore's Changi and Hong Kong's Check Lap Kok international airports.
IIA has topped the "Best Airport Worldwide"ranking by the IATA/ACI's AETRA Survey, a kind of overall ranking category, for the second straight year last year.
IIA won the top prize in four of the 11 categories of the 2005 survey ― Best Airport Worldwide, Best Airport in Asia, Best Airport (among airports handling more than 225 million passengers) and Best Improvement of Overall Satisfaction. The 2004 IATA/ACI's AETRA Survey ranked IIA second in the Best Worldwide Category.
The survey, formerly known as the TATA Global Airport Monitor, is an internally recognized report on assessing 60 airports around the world.
IIA has improved services every year since its opening in 2001 when the airport was ranked fourth. IIA's predecessor, Gimpo International Airport, got lower marks in 2000 ― placing 54th among 57 surveyed airports. IIA saw its ranking rising from sixth place in 2002 to fourth in 2003 and second in 2004. IIA has finally risen to the "Best Airport Worldwide."Incheon International Airport had been classified as a category of small- and medium-size airports with a capacity of less than 25 million passengers until 2004, but the airport has been reclassified as a category of large-sized airports with more than 25 million passengers in 2005.
There are many stats indicating that Incheon International Airport has made strides. IIA now accommodates 59 airlines operating flights to 139 cities in 44 countries. During 2005, the airport handled some 26 million passengers and 2.14 million tons of cargo to rank 10th and 3rd in the world on an international flight basis, respectively.
IIA's contribution to the national economy is enormous. Logistics has already emerged as one of the nation's next-generation growth engine industries. IAA, which has built up world-class infrastructure with advanced logistic facilities and national carriers'world-class cargo capabilities, is sure to serve as a driving force behind the national economy.
On June 1, 2006, IIA surpassed the 10 million ton mark in the accumulated cargo volume handled since its opening. IIA ranked forth in the world in cargo volume in 2002, but the airport witnessed its cargo handling ranking rising to one-notch higher to third place in the world in 2005. If the second expansion is complete, IIA is expected to rank second in terms of cargo volume following the United States.
Transshipment cargo accounted for 46.5 percent of the total volume handled by Incheon International Airport.
Incheon International Airport grabbed the No.
1 position in terms of trade volume in Korea for the second straight year in 2005, beating Busan Port, as the airport handled trade volumes worth combined $158.8 billion - $86.1 billion worth of imports and $72.7 billion worth of exports. The value of the trade volume, handled by IIA, accounted for 29 percent of the nation's total, and it translates 3.8 times as much as that of Incheon Port.
The Incheon International Airport Corporation Free Trade Zone (IIACFTZ) has been already opened to cargo traffic, bringing a step closer to the goal of turning the airport into a logistics hub of Northeast Asia. IIACFTZ comprises of the Cargo Terminal Area covering 330,000 pyeong and Airport Logispark (ALP) covering 630,000, with a combined area of 630,000 pyeong, an equivalent to 72 percent of the area of Yeouido, a formerly islet in downtown Seoul. Customs and taxes as tariffs, transportation tax and liquor tax are exempted and refunded from the area. Foreign investors accommodated in IIACFTZ are given incentives like the exemption of national taxes, regional taxes and land usage fees.
Occupants of the Cargo Terminal Area include Korea Air, Asiana Airlines and other domestic and foreign airliners. Such logistics service providers as DHL and TNT are expected to move into the area.
IAA is outfitted with advanced aircraft landing guiding equipment classified as "Category-IIIb,"world-class ones that can help aircraft making a landing in the case visibility of more than 100 meters is secured.
Such qualitative growth has led to an improvement in IAA's profits.
At the time of its opening, the global investment bank CSFB predicted that IIA would likely post net profits belatedly in 2008 and suffered long-term financial woes. However, IIA surprisingly chalked up 100 billion in net profits four years after its debut.
Analysts concur that IIA has quite more potential than accomplishments the airport has so far made. Expansion Phase II and III have been progressing or planned while efforts to make its operation substantial have been accelerated.
MAMMOTH EXPANSION. IAA officially made its debut on March 29, 2001 following the completion of the first-phase, 8 year-old construction in December 2000 and subsequent test-operation. The construction began in November 1992 with the goal of coping with an increase in the airline demand of the Seoul metropolitan area and serve as a hub port of Northeast Asia in the 2000s.
The airport now has two runways, a passenger mooring covering 1,267,000 sq. meters (380,000 pyeong), a freight mooring encompassing 129,000 sq. meters (40,000 pyeong) and a passenger terminal of 496,000 sq. meters (150,000 pyeong) capable of handling about 30 million passengers and 2.7 million tons of cargo per annum.
IAA did not be complacent with that. Incheon International Airport Corp. (IIAC) launched the second phase expansion project less than one year after its opening. The expansion project calls for securing 8,259,999 sq. meter (2.5 million pyeong) with the goal of meeting the airline demand of the year 2015. A runway, 4 km long and 60 m, one boarding building covering 165,000 sq. meter, a passenger mooring of 1,089,000 sq. meters (330,000 pyeong) and a cargo terminal of 100,000 sq. meters (30,000 pyeong) will be constructed during the seven-year period between 2002 and 2008. If and when the second phase construction project is completed, IAA will witness the frequency of flights surging from current 240,000 times to 410,000 times and the number of passengers and cargo handled soaring from 30 million to 44 million and from 2.7 million tons to 4.5 million tons, respectively,
Vice President G.H. Park of IIAC, said, "Phase II is now about 70 percent complete and it is to be open to public services in July 2008 six months prior to schedule."The facade of the Phase II passenger terminal has been already finished; the runway is to be paved in July and the passenger terminal will be complete in October, he said.
"The dedication of Phase II will bring its passenger handling capacity from 30 million passengers per annum to 44 million and annual cargo handling capacity from 2.7 million ton to 4.5 million ton,"he said.
Contractors participating in Phase II have been credited with making seamless construction within fixed construction period, he said.
The expanded IIA is projected to be filled to capacity in 2015, and the airport is to be further expanded in the final and third stage. The final stage project calls for passenger and cargo handling capacity to 100 million people and 7 million ton per annum, said Min Young-ki, chief of Construction and Planning Division at IIAA.
IIAC GOES INNOVATIVE. IIAC CEO Lee Jae-hee, a former seasoned CEO of a multinational corporation, has been taking the initiative to innovate every things ranging from operation to manpower development since he took the helm of the corporation in the late 2004,
IIAC aims to make Incheon International Airport one of the top 5 global air hubs in 2010 by offering maximum customer satisfaction beyond expectation with our professionalism in safety and security while re-positioning ourselves as most competitive global airport through strengthening our core competencies and sharpening our creativity.
IIAC has been putting more energy into pursuing innovations, social contributions, cohesion among staff members, ethical management and transparency and other corporate values.
Celebrating the sixth anniversary on May 29, IIAC will hold a variety of events, including the World Best Airport Forum, scheduled for March 28-30. The anniversary events, to be held under the concept "We Are the Star,"designed to indicate IIAC's second successive feats ― the "Best Airport Worldwide"- include a start-up ride of the IAT Building System. nw

Lee Jae-hee, president of Incheon International Airport Corp.