Incheon International Airport
Located 70 kilometres from Seoul, the capital and largest city of South Korea, Incheon International Airport is the main hub for Korean Air, Asiana Airlines and Cargo. The airports development is located on reclaimed land at a cost exceeding 5 billion USD.
The airport serves as a hub for international civilian air transportation and cargo traffic in East Asia. Incheon International Airport is considered Asia's most technologically advanced airport with its state-of-the-art security facilities. In 2009, Incheon International Airport was voted the best airport in the world, according to a 10-month survey of airline passengers.The airport was awarded the "Best in Service Award in Class" at the 1st International Conference on Airport Quality and Service by the IATA and the ACI, and ranked second in "Best Airport Worldwide", behind Hong Kong International Airport, and ahead of Singapore Changi Airport. It was also ranked No. 1 in the world by the Airports Council International.
HISTORY
After the Seoul Olympics of 1988, international air traffic to Korea increased at a tremendous rate. Especially as time progressed into the 1990s, it became apparent that Gimpo International Airport could not keep up with the increase in air traffic. It took eight years to construct the airport, and an additional six months to test operate. Due to the positive response towards the airport, its air traffic increased tremendously.
Incheon International Airport is the largest airport in South Korea, and one of the largest and busiest in Asia. It has been consecutively rated as the best airport in the world receiving the full 5-star ranking by Skytrax, the prestigious recognition shared only by Hong Kong International Airport and Singapore Changi Airport.
CONSTRUCTION PHASES
The airport was originally planned to be built in three phases, incrementally increasing airport capacity as the demand grew. This was changed, however, to four phases after the airport was opened.
Phase 1
In Phase 1, the airport had a capacity of 30 million passengers per year, and a cargo capacity of 1.7 million metric tonnes yearly. In this phase, a passenger terminal with a floor space of 496,000 square metres, two parallel runways, a control tower, an administrative building, a transportation centre (the Integrated Transportation Centre, designed by Terry Farrell & Partners), and integrated operations centre, three cargo terminals, international business center, and a government office building were constructed.
Phase 2
Phase 2 constructions were originally expected to be completed in December 2008. However, in an attempt to have the airport ready for the 2008 Beijing Olympics which took place in August 2008, the schedule was modified and Phase 2 construction was completed on 20 June 2008. During this construction phase, a third parallel 4,000 meter-long runway and a 13 hectare cargo terminal area were added. A 16.5 hectare concourse connected to the main passenger building via two parallel 870m long underground passageways was added, with a "Starline" Mitsubishi Crystal Mover APM shuttling passengers between the concourse and the main terminal.
With the completion, the airport has an annual capacity of 410,000 flights, 44,000,000 passengers, and nearly 4,500,000 metric tonnes of cargo. All foreign airlines were shifted to the new concourse, with Korean and Asiana continuing to use the existing terminal. In addition, there were numerous equipment upgrades during the phase, including the newer and better ASDE-X with MRI (Multi Radar Tracking) function, and the ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast) system with the RIMCAS (Runway Incursion Monitoring and Conflict Alert System) function. The installation of four additional sets of ASDE-X antennas is planned to reduce blind spots during heavy rainfall and in preparation for the new runway.
Phase 3
The exact modifications are currently unknown, as Incheon International Airport Corporation (IIAC) has announced that the Master Plan would be reviewed and modified upon completion of the Phase 2 expansion. It is known that the airport will add 2 additional passenger concourses, and a south east passenger terminal, with the Intra Airport Transport (IAT) being extended to cover all passenger terminals and concourses. Recently, IIAC confirmed that its original plan of constructing a new passenger terminal on the transportation center area has been modified. It now has a plan to build the terminal on the north field of the airport.
Phase 4
Estimated to be completed in 2020 this is the final and the ultimate construction stage. Upon completion, the airport will have 2 passenger terminals, 4 satellite concourses, 128 gates, and 4 parallel runways. It will be able to handle 100 million passengers and 7 million metric tonnes of cargo annually, with further possible expansions. The airport is projected to be transformed into one of the top ten busiest in the world by 2020.
The Cargo Terminal Complex comprises three cargo terminals, five separate warehouses, 24 parking stands, and administration offices. Each cargo terminal is designed to provide each carrier with unique services, and a cargo warehouse (approximately 3,500 square meters). They are separated into three areas, import, passing and export.
The logical manner in which the terminals were designed allow for a highly efficient operation. The cargo terminals also come with an advanced computer system that helps track each cargo in real time. Using the systems, managers can view individual package information, tracking information, storage information, etc in real time. The terminals also feature various other high tech technologies.
The Cargo Terminal Complex was designed to be able to process 1.7 million tons of cargo per year. However, due to the increased demands, the operators of Cargo A Terminal and Cargo B terminal have opted to expand their facilities onto the land that is available nearby. As a result, the total processing ability of the complex is currently rated at 2.7 million tons per year.
The C Terminal was not able to expand however, due to the lack of direct airside access. Once Phase II expansion is complete, the airport will have a processing ability of around 4.9 million metric tons per year. This is because the expansion which was originally designed to allow an expansion to 4.5 million tons per year would be adding on top of the current processing ability, which includes the expansions by Korean Air Cargo and Asiana Cargo which was conducted separately on a piece of land that did not conflict with the airport expansion plans.
CONCLUSION
Located at the center of the airport, the 22 story Control Tower is 100.4 meters tall and is illuminated 24 hours a day. On its highest floor is located a parabolic antenna that is used by the Airport Surface Detection Equipment (ASDE) to detect all airplanes and obstacles within 5 kilometre of the tower.
The upper floors are used by ground and tower controllers while the lower floors are mostly for support operations. The Incheon International Airport Railroad (A'REX) was brought into service on 23 March 2007. The station is located in the Transportation Center adjacent to the main terminal building.
The trains of A'REX can speed up to 120 km/h, almost two times faster than a normal subway train and cutting the travel time from Gimpo Airport to approximately 30 minutes. A ferry service from Yeongjong-do to the mainland is available. However, the ferry dock is located at considerable distance from the airport and an alternative means of transport must be sought upon arriving at the island to be able to get to the airport
PROJECT TEAM
ClientIncheon International Airport Corp. (IIAC)
Project Management Parsons
Architects: Fentress Bradburn Architects
Consultants (Operations) DLIA consortium (Deutsche AeroConsult 50%, Lahmeyer International GmbH 25%, Airport Planning Pty Ltd 25%
Consultant Engineers: Yooshin Engineering Corporation
Suppliers: Deutsche AeroConsult, Lahmeyer International GmbH and Airport Planning Pty Ltd, Otis Elevator Company
